All-Star point guard Cade Cunningham put his Detroit Pistons teams on notice ahead of Game 5 with their season on the line. The top seed Pistons are in an embarrassing situation of being down 3-1 to the eighth seed Orlando Magic. Detroit is one loss away from joining the rare top seeds to get eliminated in the first round, and most of those instances featured a major injury.
Cunningham shared the following message about everyone needing to step up in the must-win game:
“The way we’ve been playing, that stuff’s not good enough to win games. They’re outrebounding us, turning me over, we haven’t hit enough shots, our defense hasn’t caught its foot. So, it’s not shocking we’re losing games playing like that.”
A team’s superstar calling everyone out can go either way in the NBA. Some instances have caused said stars to lose the confidence of the locker room by speaking to them through the media. However, Cunningham didn’t remove himself from the statement and said they all have failed to play good enough to win playoff games. The comment from Cade is fair and honest that the Pistons have failed to deliver with pressure on them.
Detroit Risks Being Remembered As Worst #1 Seed Ever
A first-round elimination to an eighth seed would see Detroit remembered as the worst top seed ever. Only teams to get eliminated in the first round can truly contend for this terrible title, and the Pistons would join just four top seeds in the era of seven-game first-round series.
The 2023 Milwaukee Bucks, 2012 Chicago Bulls, and 2011 San Antonio Spurs all suffered their fate due to top stars getting injured. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Derrick Rose, and Manu Ginobili all suffered injuries to drastically hurt their team’s chances of winning those series.
The 2007 Dallas Mavericks were the only other team to lose with a healthy roster. Today’s Pistons roster is significantly worse than the Mavericks team that won 67 games. Fans and media questioned how legitimate Detroit was as contenders all season, and they are proving their critics right with the embarrassing performance so far.
How Pistons Can Salvage Their Season
Detroit does have a more realistic path towards coming back from a 3-1 deficit. Winning a home game in Game 5 should be the bare minimum to extend the series. The Pistons had the best home record in the Eastern Conference to give them no excuses to lose this one.
Game 6 would be the toughest task in a comeback since Detroit looked terrible in both road games against Orlando. Players like Jalen Duran, Ausar Thompson, and Duncan Robinson must step up after the Pistons offense fell apart over the past few games.
If Detroit can win two games to force a Game 7, they will be strong favorite with all the momentum and the home crowd on their side. However, this remains easier said than done after the Pistons struggled to make any baskets in the fourth quarter of a close Game 4 to warrant Cade calling them all out.
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