This Is Not The Same Cade Cunningham

This Is Not The Same Cade Cunningham

To start the season the Pistons were the laughing stock of the NBA seemingly nothing went right including the play of Cade Cunningham he struggled to create any efficient shots was turning the ball over at a high rate you get the idea however in mid December things really

Started to click for the former number one pick and we’re left with this sort of tale of two seasons over his first 25 games he was averaging 21- s but while turning the ball over four times more importantly though is the efficiency just autd 46% from Two and 32% from

Three with one of the worst true shooting percentages in the league Detroit’s offense directly felt the effects of a struggling number one as they produced just a 107 offensive rating during his minutes and in 24 games since then it’s night and day he’s averaging more points and assists on

Considerably lower turnover rates the efficiency has taken a leap in all facets to the point where he’s actually been above average and of course that’s made the Pistons better almost a 10-point Improvement offensively this is not the same Cade Cunningham typically when we talk about young Stars the first thing we point to

Is a standout athletic trait or physical tool but that’s not really kad’s calling he’s not a super explosive athlete you won’t see him leave defenders in the dust with a lightning quick first step or launch off of two feet to finish over the top of shop lockers you also won’t

Find him changing directions with Incredible agility or shredding Defenders with quick twitch movements instead his driving game is very much Cut From the Same Cloth as a guy like Luca donic using the change of pace to beat Defenders off the dribble he’s amazing at controlling his momentum on

This one he starts a right-hand drive with Derek white in his airspace and slams the brakes for a little stud before continuing which leaves him with a wide open Lane to the rim he’s got a really crafty handle to go along with those sharp changes of speed this time

Threatening a drive left only to cross back to his right and attack the Baseline here’s another example his initial driving angle gets taken away so he stops on a dime while pulling back to his left only to cross over again and that’s just highle slashing it could

Even be something as simple as a hesitation to get get him the advantage all he needs is about half a step or so by his Defender because he’s very lengthy even more important though is the sheer size he’s officially listed at 6’6 with a very filled out frame so he’s

A lot bigger and stronger than your typical point guard meaning that when he isn’t able to win that half step he can still go through most Defenders when it all comes together the change of pace craftiness size and strength you get these possessions where Cade just sort

Of forces his way to the rim regardless of how well he’s defended here’s another example his first attempt at a drive gets shut off so he resets tries again throws a counter spin back towards the middle but with a packed paint he instead chooses to step back into a

Jumper this right here is his bread and butter anytime he looks to drive and either gets cut off or there’s no space he can fall back on a truly incredible mid-range game I talked about how he’ll go through Defenders that same technique helps him create space on jumpers with

The classic bump into a step back he’s also got that craft though so on a play like this where it doesn’t seem like there’s a lane to attack he throws a nasty spin towards the middle before using an escape dribble to create a wideopen look remember that tale of two

Seasons I earlier mentioned well that really stands out when looking at Cade’s mid-range range numbers over those first 25 he attempted about eight mid-range shots per game great volume but only made 39% of them a big reason for his lack of overall scoring efficiency and since then he’s still attempting about

The same amount except now he’s converting over 50% of the time and that’s right around where the best mid-range scorers in the league T to land I don’t think it’s some mid-season leap as a shooter but more so a level of composure and most importantly shot selection he isn’t settling for long

Twos or contested looks nearly as much instead picking his spots and patiently working with his live dribble to hunt for open space from there everything else I talked about kind of falls into place this really stands out when he’s operating in the pick and roll if his

Defender gets caught trying to chase him over the top and the big is back and drop of course he’ll just pull up for a jumper and if the bigs and drop but his own Defender stays attached to his hip that’s when you’ll see him weaponize his

Change of speed coming to a stop and pulling back into a quality look if the big comes up a bit higher not letting him turn the corner he’ll often snake the screen so that he can hunt for space on one of the elbows again it’s all about patience reading the defense and

Picking his spots Turner’s up in a high drop so Kate attacks the space and when he gets to about the elbow you’re going to see him hesit itate before continuing as he eventually gets to the Baseline for a bucket or how about this one porzingis is back in that drop with

White attached to his hip so he slowly but surely works his way to the middle of the paint and because White’s on his right side instead of pulling up for a jumper he goes to a left-handed floater that’s tough his ability to work his way to the middle of the paint like that

Really puts bigs in tough spots you don’t want him to have a short mid-range jumper but as soon as capella steps out even an inch it’s an easy lob over the top and here’s one from earlier in the same game except this time he fakes the

Lob takes an extra step and wraps it around capella to create another easy two as a result defenses typically don’t want Cade operating in that in between space and would rather meet him early but he’s got counters there as well of course when bigs are up a bit higher

That puts them in a more vulnerable position to deal with his change of pace driving and he’s really good at weaponizing that threat by starting drives then keeping his drible live to make that second Defender commit as he waits for his roller to get downhill now

Feels like a good time to mention that he’s already one of the best lob passers in the NBA it’s all about anticipation right here is where he recognizes that the lob will be available and he places the ball perfectly where only WIS men can get to it another thing I want you

To focus on is how many different ways he’s comfortable releasing these passes this time he’s moving to his right and hooks it over his head right on the money you’ll notice that all of these deliveries are timed perfectly on this one the second Defender is late to

Switch and again look at the Variety in his release tossing it up from his left hip with the exact same result in addition to those Above the Rim finds he’s got a nice on the- floor passing game once again the defense switches but with no available lob he creates an

Angle around the hip of his Defender to bounce it through a tight window here’s another example he turns the corner with speed forcing the big to step up creating just enough room for a beautiful shovel pass that leads to free points this next one’s a real similar

Play except now you’re going to see a third Defender slide over to protect the nail so he kicks it to the wing for a great look on a spot up triple to make things even even tougher on the defense they’ll often set up these actions off

Of movement once again the big steps up and there’s that patience as he perfectly times up a lob pass this one starts with the exact same setup except now he’s going to use the roller as a decoy to collapse the defense leaving bogdanovich all alone on the wing for an

Easy three I think he has a especially good chemistry with Jaylen durren in these spots durren understands Cade’s patience and will time up his role accordingly notice how he stays in position to screen as he waits for the attack and the result is one of those elbow jumpers in the event that Kade

Isn’t able to create a shoty likes on the first go around he’ll reset the Twan game with a quick give and go and a second attempt usually leaves him with a decent look those little flip actions have become a go-to for them this time his Defender goes under the screen which

Leaves him with room to fire off a three this right here is the key he’s already been one of the best pick and roll scorers in the NBA this season seventh at just under 10 points a game and although 92 points per possession might not sound too efficient it is in the

66th percentile and when you consider things like team situation and spacing or how lackluster his start to the season was those are some impressive marks that’s all happening while he’s not really utilizing the three ball much on occasion you’ll see him come off a screen and pull an open space or create

Some separation with a step back but he much prefers to operate inside the Ark on the season Cade’s attempting two off the dribble threes a game and making less than 33% of them and I think this could be an X Factor in determining how high his ceiling as a Creator actually

Is if he adds even a semic consistent pull-up three it opens up everything he’ll have access to easier driving Lanes getting to either the rim or those mid-range sweet spots with more consistency defenses will be forced to play him a little differently when he’s out in space which will open up more

Passing angles and in general the efficiency of his scoring would just take another step forward I also think outside shooting will determine his ceiling as an off ball player he already spends a decent amount of time spotting up has shown incredible instincts for relocating or filling out space and it

Really just comes down to whether he can make shots or not on the season he’s at about 38% on over three attempts a game and if you just look at a stretch since the start of December that’s up to over 39% a pretty solid number if he gets to

A point where he’s consistently drawing Closeouts that opens up an entire new world of opportunity playing off the catch where defenses are right back to dealing with his playmaking so just to quickly recap some of what I’ve gone over in terms of strengths we’re talking about a jumbo sized point guard with a

Great handle who can get to the rim and is a surgical mid-range scorer he’s more than comfortable attacking different coverages in the pick and roll where it feels like he’s limited to no type of passing read and he’s already improved greatly as a shooter since entering the

League so if that continues to Trend upwards we’re talking about a pretty scary offensive player with that said there are still a couple of other things I want to briefly mention first is how much of a matchup problem Cade can be for teams with smaller guards like Chris

Paul for example just taking him to the block and creating an easy bucket or the Knicks with Brunson to avoid that mismatch they’re forced to double and a simple kickout leads to a wideopen three in addition to the matchup problems that size also gives him access to angles as

A passer that smaller guys can’t get to this time he’s doubled in the corner and finds a crosscourt dime to an open shooter on the wing which leads to a warm-up jumper but I think it’s worth noting that although he’s improved drastically over the season he still has some of those head scratching

Possessions sometimes you’ll see him try to manipulate a Defender to open up a passing window and when it doesn’t work it’ll lead to some pretty avoidable turnovers another problem he’ll run into is leaving his feet without a plan getting caught in the air and forced to

Hunt for a bailout if he can trim out some of that fat with the sort of passing ability he’s already showcased we’re talking about one of the best Playmakers in the entire NBA and that’s the thing he’s only 22 years old and just 125 games into his career there’s

More than enough time for him to improve in key areas which he’s shown throughout his third season as the situation around him him gets better and he elevates individually we’re talking about a serious offensive star who’s just scratching the surface of what he can be if you enjoyed this breakdown make sure

To drop a like subscribe and turn my post notifications on to be first on more content if you’re interested in my more in-depth research make sure to check out my website and social media profiles you can find those links in the description feel free to let me know

Down in the comments what you think of Cade as always I hope you all have a great day and I’ll catch you guys in the next one

It’s been a “tale of 2 seasons” for Cade Cunningham, who’s only scratching the surface of what he can be as an offensive superstar.

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