PHOENIX — Imagine being a kid watching a young Kevin Durant dominate with the Oklahoma City Thunder, then when you’re 23 years old, hitting a game-sealing 3-pointer over that very NBA superstar you idolized. That was Cade Cunningham’s reality Saturday night in leading the Detroit Pistons to a 133-125 win over Durant’s Phoenix Suns.
Although he lost to Cunningham and the Pistons after scoring a season-high 43 points on 14-of-26 shooting, Durant was complimentary of Cunningham postgame. Durant, who has worked out with Cunningham in the offseason, even called his younger counterpart his “brother” and said he was worthy of his first All-Star nod.
“It felt great,” Cunningham told The Athletic as he sat at his locker. “He’s an all-time great, he’s a living legend. He’s still playing, but he’s an all-time player. So to hear that from him, it feels great. It feels validating, just validates my work. I’ve thought these type of things of myself, that I could be up there with the greats.
“But to hear that from somebody that is a great, that’s done it, that’s been everywhere I’m trying to go, that’s super validating.”
Cunningham’s validation, aside from Durant’s praise, also came as a result of his 28 points on 9-of-19 shooting, 13 assists, two blocks and two steals. He went toe-to-toe with someone he’s watched and respected, who has also sustained his level of dominance he began with as a young Cunningham took notice, and walked away victorious.
“It’s an honor, man,” Cunningham said during his postgame news conference. “Every time. I tell (Durant) every time we play each other, it’s an honor to be able to compete with him. He’s such a basketball junkie. I’ve gotten the chance to work out with him, see what he’s like in the offseason and how he works.
“It’s an honor to be able to play against him, somebody that I’ve watched as a kid. … The way that him and Russ (Westbrook) and (James) Harden played (in OKC), as a kid it was fun to watch. So to be on the court with him now, competing against him, going at him, him going at me, it’s a lot of fun.”
These are the boosts in confidence that can help catapult a young player’s already high sense of self into a stratosphere where he truly believes he is the best player on the court every night. They’re the boosts in confidence that can elevate the best player on a franchise deprived of winning basketball to a level in which he pushes them back into the realm of competitive hoops to which fans were once accustomed.
Confidence boosts can also come by way of “MVP!” chants in a road arena roughly 1,700 miles from where your organization is stationed.
“On a road game, I can’t remember that ever happening,” Cunningham said. “It felt great. I give all the glory to God. I’m blessed to be doing what I love to do every night. I’m thankful for my teammates putting me in positions to be successful.
‘I just want to help this team win and it’s still a lot more games left that I’ll have an opportunity to do that.”
Cade Cunningham got a few “MVP!” chants from the fans here at Footprint Center. pic.twitter.com/F03d1x6q9i
— Hunter Patterson (@HuntPatterson_) December 22, 2024
Buckets aside, none bigger than his 3 over Durant with 32.9 seconds remaining, Cunningham dished out 13 assists to four turnovers. He’s now notched double-digit assists in 14 of his 25 games, has increased his assist average in each month of the season and hasn’t had a game with fewer than five assists yet.
Detroit coach J.B. Bickerstaff attributed Cunningham’s high-level playmaking to developing trust.
“What he’s showing is an elite level of trust in his teammates to put the ball in their hands when they’re open,” Bickerstaff said. “That trust leads to confidence and it’s how you build team. He’s been leading us that way. We talk about being selfless as being one of the things we want to try to be every single night.
“Him sharing the ball as good as he is and as much as he could shoot and score, him making his teammates better is the way that he’s leading us and I think he’s done a great job of that.”
Cunningham’s 9.7 assists average trails only Nikola Jokić and Trae Young for most in the NBA. He’s extremely creative with the ball, and listed at 6-foot-6, he’s often bigger than other teams’ opposing lead guards. His pace and inability to be sped up, even in tight windows, have noticeably improved with more robust spacing around him.
“For the guys that have been here, I’ve been having trust in them,” Cunningham said. “We’ve built relationships, we’ve built synergy with all the young guys. And then the guys that (Pistons president) Trajan (Langdon) and coach went and got, I knew their abilities coming in. I was excited to to be able to play with them.
“And then from day one, just trying to get to know them. I think more than anything it’s the amount that they trust me to make plays. They get me open a lot and I get them open a lot, it’s a two-way street and I’m just doing what I can to make their jobs easier.”
Cunningham is indeed making life easier for his teammates. The Oklahoma State product’s 13 assists accounted for a combined 30 points from seven different players. Durant spoke to not only the evolution of Cunningham’s game Saturday night, but the bond the two share.
“That’s my brother, I’ve got nothing but love for Cade,” Durant said as he held the mic at the postgame podium. “I’ve been knowing him since he was in high school and he’s always been ahead of his time. He’s wise beyond his years as a young player in this league and he can do it all.
“He’s a 6-foot-7 point guard — is he averaging 10 assists this year? Close. And 20-plus points. I think it’s his year to be an All-Star, take off and go to that next level. It’s always a joy to play against him because we compete. He doesn’t treat me like the old head and take it easy on me and vice versa. I don’t try to take it easy on him.”
GO DEEPER
Cade Cunningham’s MSG triple-double grows All-Star case as Pistons down Knicks
Cunningham was aided in his efforts by his backcourt mate, Jaden Ivey, who returned from a two-game absence due to left knee inflammation. Ivey posted 20 points on 4-of-6 shooting from long range, eight assists and eight rebounds in his return. Detroit improves to 12-17 and kicks off its four-game West Coast road trip off with a win.
But the most important component of the evening was Cunningham walking down someone he called a living legend in the game’s most precious moments to guide the Pistons to victory. That’s a scenario Detroit fans could get used to.
The mutual respect between Cunningham and Durant was apparent between both players after the game. Each gave thoughtful answers and showed all support for one another. But in discussing the win with Cunningham, it was obvious this was a matchup that meant something to him.
“He knows I’ve always enjoyed going at him. I think he enjoys going at me, too. It’s just the competition. I would’ve shot that shot in the same situation if I had got the space that I got with anybody else,” Cunningham said, before adding with a laugh from his locker: “But for it to be him, I’ll take it. I’m happy about it.”
(Photo: Kelsey Grant / Getty Images)
