The Detroit Pistons enter NBA Cup play with a clear early-season identity, and Cade Cunningham is right at the center of it.
Through five games, Detroit has picked up wins over the Boston Celtics, Miami Heat, 76ers and Charlotte Hornets, with its only loss coming against the New York Knicks. That strong start sets the stage for tonight’s opener in Group play, where the Pistons are matched with the Toronto Raptors, Orlando Magic, Milwaukee Bucks and Brooklyn Nets.
Cunningham has been the driving force behind it all. He is averaging 22.6 points, 7.8 assists and 5.6 rebounds while shooting 46% from the field. He’s also hitting 36% from three and leads the team with 1.4 blocks per game.
He backed that up in the last game against Charlotte, putting up 30 points on 10-of-22 shooting and going 4 for 9 from beyond the arc. That performance came on the second night of a back-to-back after Detroit’s loss to the defending champions, the New York Knicks, in the Garden. Cunningham controlled the offensive end from every level, adding five rebounds and seven assists while setting the tone for the Pistons.
Brooklyn comes in at 0-4, but the record doesn’t tell the whole story. The Nets have already been through a demanding stretch, falling to the Charlotte Hornets 110-103, the Cleveland Cavaliers 125-121, the Indiana Pacers 136-109 and then dropping a 125-124 overtime thriller to the Boston Celtics on a buzzer-beater from Jayson Tatum.
The Nets added Juluis Randle and Nic Claxton in the offseason, and Randle and Porter Jr. are each averaging 22 points per game. That gives Brooklyn plenty of scoring punch, and the Pistons will need to deal with the Nets’ energy and toughness for the full 48 minutes.
Detroit also took the season series from Brooklyn last year, 3-1.
The Pistons and Nets tip off tonight at Barclays Center at 7:30 p.m.
In Other News...
Nets Young Core Ran Into The Same Frustrating Problem Again
Chaney Johnson got the start in place of Egor Dmin on Friday night, a change forced by the bone bruise that has sidelined Dmin and left Brooklyn shuffling its young lineup again. The Nets actually grabbed an early lead against Detroit, but the familiar issues followed soon after, with the offense bogging down and the shots not falling as the game wore on.
Brooklyns problems only deepened in the third quarter, when the Pistons started to separate and the Nets found themselves chasing a game that had gotten away from them. By the time the fourth quarter arrived, the bench group was getting extended run for Mikel Brown Jr., Danny Wolf and Drake Powell, another reminder that this still-developing roster is trying to find answers while searching for its first win of the season. [Read more 🡒]
Nets Backcourt Shakeup Just Put One Rotation Battle In Focus
Jordi Fernandez is already reshuffling the Brooklyn backcourt three games into the season, and the move has quickly turned one of the rosters early questions into a live rotation battle. Nolan Traore got the nod in place of Keon Ellis and responded with a promising first start, finishing with 15 points and three assists before cramps forced him out of the game.
The bigger wrinkle is the health of Egor Demin, who had handled the point guard spot through the first three games before being sidelined. Chaney Johnson is set to start against the Detroit Pistons in his place, leaving Brooklyn to sort out both the short-term lineup and the longer-term fit in a backcourt that already looks unsettled. [Read more 🡒]
Nets Rotation Problem Is Putting Moritz Wagner Under Real Pressure
Moritz Wagner has given the Nets some useful scoring pop off the bench, averaging 10.3 points per game, but the fit has been far less tidy on the other end. Brooklyns defensive numbers have taken a hit with him on the floor, and the issue goes beyond one rough stretch. Wagner is more comfortable stepping out to defend the perimeter than anchoring the paint, which leaves coach Jordi Fernndez trying to balance a skill set the team can use against the interior resistance it still needs.
The problem is made trickier by the roster around him. Brooklyn does not have a deep pool of backup center answers, and the sample size is still small enough that the staff has to decide how much weight to put on early returns. Fernndez also has to factor in Wagners contract, which makes any rotation adjustment more than a simple short-term tweak, and the next stretch could say a lot about how long the Nets keep leaning on him in that role. [Read more 🡒]