Kendrick Perkins Makes Bold Claim About Cade Cunningham Over Luka Doncic

Coming into the 2025-26 NBA season, Los Angeles Lakers superstar guard Luka Doncic dedicated himself to getting in shape following the aftermath of how everything went down with the Dallas Mavericks, which has produced some promising results, as he’s currently leading the league in scoring at 32.8 points per game.

Doncic also wanted to improve his play on the defensive end of the basketball floor, which hasn’t gone as well, as he still gets frequently criticized for his effort or lack thereof on defense this season.

Kendrick Perkins: Cade Cunningham ‘Leapfrogged’ Luka Doncic

Kendrick Perkins says Cade Cunningham is officially better than Luka Dončić and is now right up there with SGA, Giannis, and Jokic.

(🎥 @RoadTrippinShow / h/t @NBA__Courtside )

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— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) February 20, 2026

With Doncic still being a liability defensively, ESPN’s Kendrick Perkins believes that Cade Cunningham of the Detroit Pistons has become a better all-around player and is now among the league’s elite, via The Road Trippin’ Show.

“Cade Cunningham has just leapfrogged Luka Doncic as far as top-five players in the NBA in my eyes,” Perkins said. “Jaylen Brown is in that conversation as well.

“And Cade Cunningham plays both sides of the basketball. Jaylen Brown plays both sides of the basketball.”

Cunningham is having an incredible season while being the undisputed leader of the Pistons, who currently have the best record in the NBA as of Friday at 41-13.

Although Cunningham is a rising star in the NBA and has quickly turned the Pistons into a legitimate title contender in the Eastern Conference, it’s a little early to say the new face of the Detroit franchise has jumped ahead of Doncic, who has been playing at an elite level since coming into the league in 2018.

If Cunningham leads the Pistons to a title this season, this would be a different conversation, but the Duke product still has a lot to prove, as he only started to play at an elite level last season after battling through injuries his first three years in Detroit.

Horace Grant Compares Michael Jordan & Kobe Bryant

Kobe Bryant Los Angeles Lakers — Dec 14, 2014; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant (24) celebrates after surpassing Michael Jordan on the NBA All-Time Scoring List during the second quarter against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-Imagn Images | Brace Hemmelgarn-Imagn Images

Four-time NBA champion Horace Grant was one of only three players in the league to play with both Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, giving him an interesting perspective on these two iconic players, who are often compared.

In a recent interview with Essentially Sports, Grant shared his thoughts on Jordan and Bryant, who won a combined 11 titles during their Hall of Fame careers in the NBA with the Chicago Bulls and Lakers.

“Playing with the Lakers and playing with the late great Kobe Bryant, if I had to compare the two, if you will, the same passion, the same work ethic, the no-nonsense type of, put your hard hat on and you go out and do it and make your teammates better,” Grant said. “And that was Kobe Bryant. So if I had to choose one, it would be Kobe Bryant, similar to MJ, but with MJ’s mindset, I don’t see no one else.”