Pistons Fall to Rockets, Exposing a Familiar Flaw: Cade Needs More Help
DETROIT - With just under two minutes left on the clock, the home crowd at Little Caesars Arena had seen enough. The Pistons trailed by 10, and fans began filing toward the exits, bracing for both a loss and the bitter cold outside. What they left behind, though, was a telling snapshot of where this team stands - and where it still needs to go.
Detroit’s 111-104 loss to a Houston Rockets squad playing on the second night of a back-to-back wasn’t just another tally in the loss column. It was a reminder that no matter how strong the Pistons have been defensively this season, they’re still searching for a consistent second option behind Cade Cunningham.
Cade’s Return Still a Work in Progress
Cunningham, fresh off a four-game stretch where he’s been working his way back from a wrist contusion and an illness, hasn’t quite looked like himself. Over that span, he’s averaging 13.5 points while shooting just 30% from the field and a rough 11.1% from beyond the arc. He’s still dishing out 9.5 assists per game - the vision and playmaking are there - but the scoring efficiency has dipped, and so has the offensive rhythm around him.
That rhythm was clearly off Friday night. Cunningham finished with 12 points on 5-of-13 shooting and committed six turnovers, as the Rockets threw wave after wave of long, athletic defenders at him.
Between Amen Thompson, Jabari Smith Jr., Kevin Durant, and Josh Okogie, Houston had the length and versatility to make life difficult - and they did. The game plan was straightforward and brutally effective: trap Cade in pick-and-rolls, crowd the paint, and force the ball out of his hands.
And when that happened, Detroit didn’t have enough answers.
Duren Stepping Up, But It’s Not Enough
Jalen Duren continues to grow into a legitimate second option. He led the Pistons with 18 points and continues to show signs of becoming a more self-sufficient scorer.
His development is one of the season’s bright spots, but even he couldn’t carry the offensive load late. Duren only scored two points in the fourth quarter, and with Cade bottled up and the perimeter shooters struggling - Tobias Harris and Duncan Robinson combined to go 3-for-14 - there just wasn’t enough firepower to mount a comeback.
Duren, who often sets the screens that free up Cunningham, was candid postgame about the team’s struggles against the blitz.
“It’s on whoever the screener is… to understand they’re hotting (double-teaming) him,” Duren said. “We need to get open to give him outlets so he’s not on an island by himself trying to make tough passes with two bodies on him.”
It’s a simple concept, but one that requires chemistry, timing, and reps. And right now, the Pistons are still figuring that part out.
A Good Team with a Glaring Hole
Here’s the thing: Detroit is still in a strong position. They’ve won four of their last five, sit at 32-11, and hold a 4.5-game lead over the Celtics in the East.
But zoom in on those four wins - they came against a Suns team missing Devin Booker, a pair of 11-win squads in the Pacers and Pelicans, and a Celtics team that didn’t bring its best. So while the record is impressive, the margin for error is shrinking - especially when the playoffs roll around and defenses start scheming like Houston did on Friday.
Cunningham is the focal point of every opponent’s scouting report. He’s the engine of Detroit’s offense, and the numbers back that up.
The Pistons score 7.1 more points per 100 possessions when he’s on the floor, which ranks in the 92nd percentile league-wide. That’s elite impact.
But when teams take him out of the equation, Detroit needs someone else who can consistently punish defenses.
Right now, that player doesn’t exist on the roster.
Tobias Harris dropped 25 against Boston earlier in the week. Duren had 20 against New Orleans.
But those performances have been more sporadic than reliable. And when Cade is being blitzed and denied the ball - as Houston did effectively - the Pistons don’t have a go-to scorer to take advantage of the 4-on-3 situations that follow.
“That’s something we welcome,” Cunningham said of the Rockets’ aggressive coverage. “It creates 4-on-3s out of that, and I trust my teammates.”
That trust is admirable. But at some point, it needs to be rewarded with consistent scoring support.
Looking Ahead: Trade Deadline Looms
With the Feb. 5 trade deadline less than two weeks away, Detroit’s front office has some decisions to make. The team is clearly a contender in the East, thanks in large part to its defense and the all-around brilliance of Cunningham. But Friday’s loss laid bare the reality: if the Pistons want to make real noise in the postseason, they’ll need to add another offensive weapon - someone who can get their own shot when defenses collapse on Cade.
Until then, the Pistons will keep grinding. The defense will keep them in games.
Cunningham will keep creating. Duren will keep growing.
But if Detroit wants to turn this promising season into something more, they’ll need more than just potential.
They’ll need help.