Pistons’ All-Star Cade Cunningham recently appeared on the Jimmy Fallon Show and spoke about how the franchise turned things around in 2024-25. He majorly credits the changes in the general manager and head coach of the team for those cultural changes in the organization that led to their first appearance in the Playoffs since 2019.
“We’re on the way up,” said Cunningham confidently as the crowd cheered for him.
“I think the start of that has to be Trajan Langdon and J.B. Bickerstaff first and foremost. They came in and brought a structure to us, and just another hunger that helped us,” he further added.
“We had a horrible year before they got here, so everybody, we all had a chip on our shoulder. Then we bring in two guys like that who also have a chip on their shoulder,” said Cunningham, implying it was the perfect match of mentality for players and the management.
Cunningham led the Pistons in 2024-25 and earned his first All-Star selection in that season. His performance also took a major leap from the 2023-24 season. In 2023-24, he averaged 22.7 points, 7.5 assists, and 4.3 rebounds per game. Subsequently, in 2024-25, he averaged 26.1 points, 9.1 assists, and 6.1 rebounds, thereby improving in each major statistical category.
In the previous two seasons, they finished with the worst record in the league for consecutive seasons before taking the Playoff leap in 2024-25. Subsequently, they announced that Troy Weaver was stepping down and Trajan Langdon was replacing him as the general manager of the Pistons. Just a few days after that, Monty Williams was fired and replaced with the former Cavaliers coach, J.B. Bickerstaff.
After reaching the Playoffs, they forced the Knicks to six games before a nail-biting exit. Cunningham seems confident that in year two under Bickerstaff’s guidance and Langdon’s management, it would be even better than that.
Alongside Cunningham, the Pistons also have exciting young pieces in Jalen Duren, Ausar Thompson, Jaden Ivy, and more. Therefore, the Pistons have a young foundational core that they can look to keep together if they want to have a shot at the championship in the near future.
The Pistons last won a championship in 2004, and it has been over two decades since. Two consecutive seasons at the bottom of the league would give any team a chip on its shoulder.
It is an optimistic sign for the Pistons that they have bounced back from adversity like they did last season, and in my opinion, they are merely two or three seasons away from being considered serious championship contenders after gaining some playoff experience. If they retain the foundational core with Ivey, Duren, and Thompson, they could have a very bright future ahead of them.
Can Cunningham and this roster bring the Pistons back to their glory days? Let us know what you think in the comments section.
