Pistons’ Cade Cunningham is having one of the better seasons no one is talking

DETROIT — Three years ago, as an up-and-coming prospect still living at home, Ausar Thompson argued with his twin brother, Amen, ad nauseam leading up to the 2021 NBA Draft about who should be the No. 1 pick.

Ausar thought the Detroit Pistons, who held the top pick that year, should take Oklahoma State guard Cade Cunningham. He didn’t particularly think it was close. Ausar naturally gravitates toward players who get others involved, and who control the game — qualities Cunningham has that had many executives, scouts and media members think he was one of the more complete prospects of the last several years. Amen thought the G League Ignite’s Jalen Green should go No. 1, with Green’s athleticism and explosiveness being the main factors.

Detroit ended up taking Cunningham at No. 1, allowing Ausar to boast in the face of his twin. The twist is that just a few years later the brothers ended up being teammates of the players they had championed. In the case of Ausar, drafted No. 5 overall by the Pistons in last year’s NBA Draft, his appreciation for Cunningham’s game has grown exponentially since they’ve come together.

“I didn’t know he was the level of shot maker that he is,” Ausar Thompson told The Athletic on Saturday night, following Detroit’s 112-109 loss to the Orlando Magic, a game in which Cunningham scored 26 points on 11-of-20 shooting. “I feel like this year that he’s stepped it up to a ridiculous level. I’ve been watching him for a long time and, obviously, he’s been good in the midrange, but he hits some tough ones.

“He has many, many spots on the floor. Before, I thought he picked his shots, more conservative. He gets a bucket until you can stop him. He also passes way better than I thought he could pass. The lobs are amazing.”

Cade tonight:

????26 PTS
????7 REB
????4 AST
????1 STL
????4-7 3PM#DetroitBasketball pic.twitter.com/WNCXCgfvKN

— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) February 25, 2024

Cunningham, who is technically in Year 3 but played only 12 games during his sophomore season due to injury, is having one of the better individual seasons in the NBA no one is talking about.

For example:

Player A: 22.7 points, 6.8 rebounds, 4.7 assists, 49 eFG%, 1.0 steals, 0.5 blocks and 3.0 turnovers

Player B: 22.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, 7.4 assists, 50.2 eFG%, 0.9 steals, 0.3 blocks and 3.5 turnovers

Player A is 6-foot-10 Magic forward Paolo Banchero, who just recently made his first NBA All-Star Game. Player B is the 6-6 Cunningham, who is playing on the eight-win Pistons.

Cunningham’s season is good in itself. Factor in that he essentially missed all of last year, is learning to play with a metal rod in his leg and doesn’t have as many weapons alongside him as Banchero does, and this season is borderline impressive.

Cunningham knows the game. He gets it. Winning matters. No one is talking about him because no one is talking about Detroit, unless it involves a historic losing streak. Cunningham isn’t in…