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Cade Cunningham Shares Honest Mentality After Clutch Shot vs Heat

What was Cade Cunningham's mentality on the final play against the Heat?
Justin Grasso|
Mar 17, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (2) celebrates a basket with guard Dennis Schroder (17) against the New Orleans Pelicans during the second half at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images
Mar 17, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (2) celebrates a basket with guard Dennis Schroder (17) against the New Orleans Pelicans during the second half at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images | Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

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Detroit PistonsMiami Heat

With five seconds left to go in Wednesday night’s matchup between the Detroit Pistons and the Miami Heat, the entire arena down South Beach knew the ball was likely to go in Cade Cunningham’s hands on the final offensive possession.

The one-time All-Star couldn’t get to his spot easily. With an elite defender like Bam Adebayo trailing him, Cunningham had to fight his way to the ball.

Cunningham wasn’t looking to bait his defender for a foul. He didn’t see a clear lane for himself to drive, either. The veteran star simply pulled up with just enough space to launch a three in Adebayo’s face.

With plenty of arc on the shot, Cunningham hit the glass and sunk a game-winning three as the Heat had just 0.6 seconds to play when they got the ball back.

After the matchup, Cunningham revealed his mentality in that moment.

“Just go get one—find a way," Cunningham told reporters. "I guess that’s the main thing. It’s something I love to do. To have the trust by your team to be put in that situation to go win the game like that, it’s a blessing. I try to make the most out of it, and all glory to God.”

Cunningham helped lead the Pistons to that moment. In 35 minutes of action, he shot 11-25 from the field and knocked down three of his four shots from beyond the arc.

The star guard led the Pistons in scoring with 25 points. He produced a triple-double by collecting 12 rebounds and dishing out 11 assists. He also snatched a steal and blocked two shots.

The Pistons moved to 39-31 on the year with a 116-113 win over the Miami Heat. That win helps the Pistons get one step closer to potentially moving up the Eastern Conference standings.

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Justin Grasso
JUSTIN GRASSO

Justin Grasso was a credentialed writer and publisher covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s 76ers On SI Network. Grasso got his start in sports media in 2016 with FantasyPros, working the news desk, providing game-by-game player analysis and updates on the Portland Trail Blazers and the Golden State Warriors. By 2017, he joined FanSided’s Philadelphia Eagles site as a staff writer. After spending one season covering the Eagles as a staff writer, Grasso was promoted to become the site’s Co-Editor. For the next two NFL seasons, he covered the Eagles closely before broadening his NFL coverage. For a brief stint, Grasso covered the NFL on a national basis after joining Heavy.com as an NFL news desk writer. In 2019, Grasso joined the 76ers' beat on a part-time basis, stepping into a role with South Jersey’s 97.3 ESPN. Ahead of the 2019-2020 NBA season, he concluded a three-year stint covering the Eagles and joined the Sixers beat full-time. Grasso has covered the 76ers exclusively since then for Sports Illustrated. He is a member of the Pro Basketball Writers Association. Twitter: @JGrasso_ Instagram: @JGrassoMedia

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