Cade Cunningham is wasting no time shifting the Pistons’ attention from a brutal playoff ending to the work ahead.
According to Dave McMenamin of ESPN, Cunningham has put together a player mini-camp for this upcoming week, giving Detroit an early chance to get on the same page before training camp opens in a little over one month. The workout is scheduled to take place in San Diego.
The move comes after a season that ended in frustration for the Pistons, who were knocked out at home in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals by the Cleveland Cavaliers. That loss erased plenty of the momentum from Detroit’s first 60-win season in 20 years.
There’s still no confirmation on whether Jalen Duren will be part of the mini-camp. He remains without a contract for next season while talks with the Pistons continue.
For Cunningham, though, this is another step in cementing himself as the face of the franchise and a real MVP-level talent. The former No. 1 overall pick had a strong case this past season.
He played in 64 games, logging a little more than 33 minutes per night, and posted 23.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, 9.9 assists and 1.4 steals per game. Cunningham shot 46.1 percent from the field, 34.2 percent from 3-point range and 81.2 percent from the free-throw line.
Cunningham has spent his entire career in Detroit and is heading into his sixth NBA season after earning his second straight All-Star nod.
In Other News...
Pistons Suddenly Face A Jalen Duren Decision They Can't Avoid
Jalen Durens contract situation is starting to loom over Detroit in a way that the front office cant really ignore anymore. The Pistons have made clear they are reluctant to move on from the young big man, but his next deal is already shaping up as a complicated one, with restricted free agency after the 2025-26 season setting up a negotiation that could define more than just one roster spot.
The risk for Detroit is that the discussion does not stay neatly inside a standard extension framework. If the talks drift into more creative territory, the Pistons would have to weigh whether to keep pushing for a long-term fit or consider a sign-and-trade path that at least preserves value. Either way, this is the kind of decision that can quietly reshape the rest of the roster, especially with Cade Cunningham still at the center of everything the team is building. [Read more 🡒]
Jalen Duren Just Added Pressure To A Pistons Decision Still Looming
Jalen Durens summer picked up another layer of meaning back home in Sharon Hill, Pennsylvania, where he was celebrated with a day in his honor and a street rename that reflected how far he has come. For the Pistons, it is another reminder that their young center keeps building a profile that reaches well beyond Detroit, after a season in which he averaged 19.5 points and 10.5 rebounds per game.
All of that only sharpens the focus on the contract talks still unfolding between Duren and the franchise. He is eligible for a five-year, $287 million max extension, and while there have been reports that the sides could be circling some kind of middle ground, nothing has been finalized yet, leaving Detroit with a decision that remains very much in play. [Read more 🡒]
Jalen Durens Playoff Slide May Have Cost Him At Worst Time
The cautionary tale around Peyton Watson and Rich Paul has already become part of the offseason conversation, but it also puts a sharper edge on what happened with Jalen Duren in Detroit. Watson sat out most of Denvers playoff run because of a hamstring issue, protecting his long-term value and contract outlook, while Duren chose to play through the postseason for the Pistons. In a league where young players are always trying to balance availability with leverage, those decisions can carry real consequences once free agency arrives.
For Duren, the timing has been especially awkward because playoff showing matters so much in restricted free agency. A center can build a lot of momentum with a strong spring, and an uneven one can leave teams looking at the same player differently a few months later. The Pistons are still working through the business side with the 22-year-old, and his postseason slide has only made the next step in that process more complicated than anyone in Detroit probably wanted. [Read more 🡒]