Detroit Pistons’ J.B. Bickerstaff: Cade Cunningham Is Both Unique And Special

In last night’s back and forth battle in the nation’s capital, the Detroit Pistons were able to outlast the Washington Wizards thanks to the late-game heroics of Cade Cunningham. 

As the All-Star point guard on the squad, Cunningham is unabashedly the team’s leader, and performances like last night’s 52-point, 11-assist, zero turnover illustrate why that is. Not only did Cade turn it up a notch when the lights were brightest, he did so by posting 30 points in the fourth quarter and overtime periods to give Detroit a timely boost in their 144-140 win. 

From a wider perspective, Cunningham’s scoring feat, which ranks fourth in Pistons history, secured the Pistons’ second victory over the Wizards in one week, which is unique enough in and of itself. But to do so without the help of All-Star center Jalen Duren? Even after Daniss Jenkins fouled out of the game as the only other player to cross the 20-point threshold for Detroit? That makes Cunningham’s effort even more impressive. 

“It speaks to who he is,” Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said after the game. “The more and more you’re around him, the more and more you respect him for who he is and what his abilities are. To be able to do what he does in the moment when he’s called on is unique and it’s special. He never ceased to amaze. He just understands what it takes to get it done, then has all the abilities to make those things happen.”

In fact, no player in NBA history since 1977-78 has had a 50-point, 10-assist game without committing a single turnover other than Cunningham, so last night’s peerless performance in one that will go down in the record books. 

But from Bickerstaff’s perspective, the Pistons could have played a cleaner game as a whole, Cunningham excluded. Detroit allowed the Wizards to hang around late in a game that had 20 lead changes, so there were a few areas to clean up according to the All-Star coach. For example, the Pistons defense was so aggressive that they deflected five-plus passes that could have turned into steals if not for a couple unfortunate bounces that led to Washington baskets.

As expected, Ausar Thompson was an impactful piece of that defensive effort, but the takeaway should be that AT logged his first triple-double in the NBA with 17 points, 11 rebounds, 11 assists, three steals and three blocks on the night while applying such suffocating defense. For most of the night, Thompson frustrated No. 1 overall pick A.J. Dybantsa into a paltry five-point performance, which led to Bickerstaff complimenting AT’s aggressiveness after the game. 

Now at 8-3 on the season, the Pistons are still looking to welcome both Isaiah Joe and Jalen Duren back to the lineup sometime soon after each missing a handful of games. JD will not be reevaluated for another week, so Detroit will continue to decide whether it’s better to roll with John Collins or Paul Reed at the five before each game, just as they’ve done recently.