Detroit Pistons gear up for first round playoff matchup with the Orlando Magic
If there is a downside for the Detroit Pistons in securing the top seed in the East entering the postseason, it would be that they had an unknown opponent in the first round until about 10 pm last night. In a way, the Pistons’ dominance during the regular season created a temporary competitive disadvantage to open up the playoffs, but Detroit now has all the information that they need.
Since the dust of the play-in round has settled, the Pistons can zero in on the Orlando Magic as their first round counterpart in a series that will kick off on Sunday, April 19 at 6:30 pm. Little Caesars Arena will host the team’s playoff opener just one night from now, and Pistons point guard Cade Cunningham is already teeming with anticipation for the next stage of the season.
“I’m excited to get out there, excited to see the city and how our home games are going to look,” Cunningham said on Friday. “Get our first home win since I’ve been here, so it’s a lot to be excited about. Watching these games this last week, it’s getting me anxious. I’m just fired up, man. I watched the intros to our team last year, and I’m just fired up. It’s going to be fun.”
As Cunningham alluded to, the Motor City has been bankrupt and devoid of postseason success for much of the last decade, but the All-Star starter has an opportunity to breathe new playoff life back into Detroit with the Magic on the docket. During the regular season, the Pistons split a four-game series against Orlando with two wins apiece, but the games have not been particularly close affairs considering the double-digit margin of victory in three of those four matchups.
In their most recent meeting, which unfolded as a 123-107 victory for the Magic, Cunningham was still recovering from his collapsed lung and did not feature in the late-season tilt, so the Pistons will have a deeper, more healthy squad to work with during the playoffs. But in terms of Cunningham’s injury scare, the fifth-year floor general says that he’s working towards a full recovery even if he’s not there yet.
“I’m getting close, man,” Cunningham said. “I don’t think I’m back yet. Obviously, I still have some things that I’m still trying to get back to full speed and just getting my rhythm and everything back, but I’m getting close. I’m just knocking a little bit more of the dust off every day.”
Cunningham averaged just under 24 points per game and 10 assists each night for the Pistons, but the Oklahoma State product’s impact goes far beyond those statistics given his leadership and defensive impact. Throughout the year, Cunningham and Victor Wembanyama were the only players in the NBA to block at least three shots and record at least three steals in the same game on four different occasions, so the emergence of Cunningham as an impact two-way guard just adds another layer to Detroit’s resume entering the playoffs.
In the lead-in to the postseason, Cunningham has remained mentally active from a basketball context by watching the play-in games while Detroit waited to find out their opponent.
“Been really good basketball for sure, East and West,” Cunningham said. “I’ve enjoyed watching the games and seeing the atmosphere each game has and the amount of pressure on both teams. It’s fun, obviously not knowing who we play you have to keep a broad view on everything and make sure we’re locked in on what we have to do to be the best versions of ourselves.”
Cunningham referred to the familiarity of the playoff series as a chess match, and the Pistons’ leader will have an opportunity to make the first move tomorrow night in front of what’s sure to be a lively Motown crowd.
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