Cade Cunningham’s Third Season With Detroit Pistons Concludes

Cade Cunningham misses the Detroit Pistons' season finale against the Spurs.

Monty Williams was holding out hope for another Cade Cunningham appearance down the stretch of the 2023-2024 NBA season.

Unfortunately, the Detroit Pistons star’s stretch of absences continued on Sunday afternoon, leaving Cunningham out for the final game of the 2023-2024 NBA season.

Cunningham misses seven games in a row for the Pistons. While he wasn’t diagnosed with a knee injury, the veteran has been dealing with soreness for quite some time.

Considering the Pistons haven’t had much to play for as of late, they were extremely cautious down the stretch. Now, Cunningham can focus on his fourth season as the face of the franchise.

Many viewed Cunningham’s season three as his true sophomore effort. Since he had an injury-plagued run in 2022-2023, Cunningham had the chance to appear in just 12 games.

This season, Cunningham returned and improved each area of his game.

In 62 outings, the veteran guard spent around 34 minutes on the court per game. In the scoring department, he averaged 23 points while shooting 45 percent from the field and 36 percent from beyond the arc.

Cunningham also shined with his passing, dishing out eight assists per game. Minimizing turnovers will be a key of emphasis for Cunningham moving into year four. According to Cleaning the Glass, the veteran turned the ball over on 13 percent of his possessions.

Outside of the scoring and playmaking, Cunningham also averaged four rebounds, one steal, and 0.4 blocks per game.

The Pistons have a lot of question marks moving forward. With a historically disappointing season all wrapped up, some major changes could be in play this summer. One thing is for sure, though, Cunningham remains the cornerstone player of the franchise.

While he leaves his third season on a low note, missing nine of the final 12 games, Cunningham can focus on getting healthy and improving his game for next season.