Detroit's Cunningham makes strong case for NBA Rookie of the Year plum

NEW YORK – Before the game, the Detroit Pistons’ public relations team sent an email presenting Cade Cunningham’s case for the NBA Rookie of the Year race. 

The No. 1 overall pick is on pace to become the 10th rookie in NBA history to average at least 17 points, five rebounds and five assists. Eight of those previous nine went on to win the Rookie of the Year award. 

Cunningham backed that up with a strong performance against Kevin Durant while outplaying Kyrie Irving Tuesday night (Wednesday, Manila time) in front of a sold-out Barclays Center crowd. 

The Brooklyn Nets needed 41 points from Kevin Durant and clutch hits from Seth Curry to fend off Cunningham and his young but feisty Detroit Pistons crew, 130-123, to stay in the hunt for an outright playoff spot. They trail sixth seed Toronto Raptors by 3.5 games with only six games left. 

But the story of the night was the showdown between Durant and Cunningham.  

Cunningham matched his career-high 34 points, bucking a poor first half and a tailbone injury scare. He added six assists and two steals in 32 minutes. 

The Nets were expected to run over the Pistons, tied with Orlando Magic for the league’s worst record. But the Pistons hit nine of their first 13 three-point attempts and stunned the Nets with a dozen-point lead in the first half. 

Cunningham had five assists in the opening quarter despite struggling with his shot. He missed seven of his first nine shots and was questionable to return after his tailbone bothered him, forcing him to go to the locker room with a Pistons medical staff. 

As Durant took over in the third quarter with 16 points to overhaul the Pistons’ lead, Cunningham surprisingly returned and stepped up to the challenge. 

Cunningham responded with 17 of his 29 second-half points in the fourth quarter. He attacked Durant and played like the player he was hyped to be, prompting ESPN’s NBA front office insider Bobby Marks to tweet the obvious: “Detroit fans, you have a franchise player in Cade Cunningham.”

The 20-year old rookie shot 11 of 18 in the second half and methodically scored from all angles — beyond the arc, midrange, and in the paint off the dribble. 

“People have always tried to downplay me because I’m not going between my legs and dunking on dudes crazy,” Cunningham said. “Maybe my style of play isn’t people’s favorite style of play.”

But it suits Detroit’s blue-collar vibe. 

“He showed against the best team in the East, I think, that he has ‘it,’” Pistons coach Dwane Casey said of his top rookie. 

He was more impressed with Cunningham’s refusal to sit out after his tailbone bothered him in the first half. 

“That tells me a lot about that young man to bounce back the way he did,” Casey said. “To come out and give us 34, the effort defensively, that he had, like I said, he has ‘it.’ But again, we just got to make sure we take care of the little things as we grow as a team. And like I said, I’m proud. Our guys could have thrown in the towel, but they didn’t, and they played against the team who has a chance to win a championship.”

“I mean, I wanted to play,” Cunningham said. “I felt like, the first few minutes, we had a good rhythm going. I thought I was seeing the floor well. So, I wanted to play pretty badly.”

A Cunningham reverse layup against Durant tied the game at 108 for the last time at the 5:09 mark. The Nets pulled away with Durant and Andre Drummond hitting their free throws and Curry sinking two 3-pointers — his only made field goals — after missing his first five shots. 

Irving played much better in his second game at home since city mayor Eric Adams exempted athletes and performers from the employer vaccine mandate. The unvaccinated guard had 24 points on 7 of 18 shots and four assists against six turnovers. But he was only a sidelight to the Durant-Cunningham duel. 

Durant made all of his nine free throws and shot 14 of 23 from the field while adding 11 rebounds and five assists. He moved within three games of scoring at least 30 points to catch Vince Carter for the most 30-point games in a single season in the Nets’ franchise history. 

After a big scare from the Pistons, Durant was impressed with Cunningham. 

“You got a 6-7 point guard, s—t; it’s a good start, you know?” Durant said of Cunningham afterward when asked about the Pistons’ future. “Somebody that can wreck a whole defensive game plan with his size and timing and skill, so it’s a great start.”

“Then you’ve got Saddiq Bey and Marvin Bagley, Jerami Grant, Isaiah Stewart. Man, you’ve got just length and toughness down the line and a great coaching staff that’s going to get the best out of their players. I can see this team being something, a force to be reckoned with in the future.”

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Alder Almo is a former senior sportswriter for Philstar.com and NBA.com Philippines. He is now based in Jersey City, New Jersey, and writes for the New York-based sports website empiresportsmedia.com.