Getty
Detroit Pistons star Cade Cunningham made NBA history against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Cade Cunningham has pushed the Detroit Pistons into a rare place in the NBA playoffs, and the league made sure to put the milestone in historical context before Game 3 against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The NBA announced on X that Cunningham became the fourth player in league history to score at least 20 points in each of his first 15 career playoff games, joining Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
Cunningham’s consistency has become the foundation of a Pistons run that has already included a first-round comeback against the Orlando Magic and a 2-0 Eastern Conference semifinal lead over Cleveland. Detroit beat the Cavaliers 107-97 in Game 2 behind Cunningham’s 25 points and 10 assists, with 12 of those points coming in the fourth quarter.
The Pistons can now take full control of the series in Game 3. For a franchise trying to turn a breakthrough postseason into something bigger, Cunningham’s star turn is quickly becoming the defining story.
Cunningham’s current playoff production explains why the NBA milestone landed with more force than a normal social-media graphic.
Through nine games this postseason, Cunningham is averaging 30.6 points, 7.4 assists and 5.1 rebounds while playing 40.8 minutes per game. He is shooting 45.0% from the field and 40.6% from 3-point range, according to StatMuse.
His last 10 overall games show how steady the surge has been. Cunningham is averaging 28.2 points, 8.1 assists and 5.4 rebounds over that stretch.
That is a major jump from an already strong regular-season baseline. Cunningham averaged 23.9 points, 9.9 assists and 5.5 rebounds during the 2025-26 regular season.
Against Cleveland, the matchup has not been unfamiliar. Cunningham has averaged 22.6 points, 8.0 assists and 5.0 rebounds in 14 regular-season and playoff games against the Cavaliers since 2022-23, according to StatMuse.
The difference now is the stage. Cunningham had 23 points and seven assists in Detroit’s Game 1 win over Cleveland, then followed with 25 points and 10 assists in Game 2.
The late-game piece matters most. Reuters reported that Cunningham scored 12 fourth-quarter points in Game 2, and Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff called him “the killer” and “the closer” after the win.
The Pistons-Cavaliers series has also created a sharp contrast between Cunningham and James Harden.
Harden’s full postseason line is still respectable: 19.6 points, 5.9 assists and 5.7 rebounds in nine playoff games. But the efficiency and ball-security issues have become part of Cleveland’s problem. Harden is shooting 42.3% from the field and 32.2% from 3-point range while averaging 5.2 turnovers per game this postseason, according to StatMuse, and he’s been even worse against the Pistons.
Game 2 was rougher. Harden finished with 10 points, six rebounds, three assists and four turnovers while shooting 3-of-13 from the field and 0-of-4 from 3-point range.
That matters because Cleveland has already been fighting uphill in possessions. The Cavaliers committed 20 turnovers in Game 1, and Reuters noted that Detroit’s physical defense continued to bother Cleveland early in Game 2.
Cunningham has not been mistake-free, but Detroit can live with his usage because he is driving the Pistons’ offense and closing games. Harden’s struggles are different for Cleveland because the Cavaliers need him to ease pressure on Donovan Mitchell, not add to it.
Mitchell scored 31 points in Game 2, and Jarrett Allen added 22 points and seven rebounds, but Cleveland shot just 7-of-32 from 3-point range and missed all 11 of its fourth-quarter attempts.
That is where the Cunningham-Harden comparison becomes more than a stat split. One guard is controlling the series’ biggest moments. The other is searching for rhythm as his team heads home facing a 2-0 deficit.
The Pistons and Cavaliers meet in Game 3 on Saturday, May 9, at Rocket Arena in Cleveland.
Tipoff is scheduled for 3 p.m. ET, according to Yahoo Sports’ watch guide. The game is listed for NBC and Peacock, with streaming also available through NBA League Pass where applicable.
Detroit enters with a 2-0 series lead after winning both games at home by 10 points.
For the Pistons, the opportunity is obvious. A win would put them one victory away from the Eastern Conference finals and push Cunningham’s postseason rise even further into the national spotlight.
For the Cavaliers, the pressure is just as clear. Cleveland needs a cleaner offensive game, more from Harden and a better answer for Cunningham when the ball finds him late.
The NBA’s history post put Cunningham alongside Abdul-Jabbar, James and Davis. Game 3 will show whether that individual milestone is becoming part of a much larger Pistons playoff story.
Erik Anderson is an award-winning sports journalist covering the NBA, MLB and NFL for Heavy.com. He also focuses on the trading card market. His work has appeared in nationally-recognized outlets including The New York Times, Associated Press , USA Today, and ESPN. More about Erik Anderson
此内容由惯性聚合(RSS阅读器)自动聚合整理，仅供阅读参考。 原文来自 — 版权归原作者所有。