OVERMATCHED: Detroit Pistons and Cade Cunningham CRUMBLE as Victor Wembanyama DESTROYS Detroit
Detroit Pistons overwhelmed as Victor Wembanyama delivers dominant performance, exposing Detroit’s defensive woes and raising concerns for the playoff push.
Ku Khahil breaks down the Pistons’ 121-106 loss to the San Antonio Spurs, spotlighting Wembanyama’s 39 points, 16 rebounds, and elite rim protection that stifled Cade Cunningham and the Detroit offense. With Ausar Thompson and Ron Holland sidelined due to injuries, the Pistons struggled at the point of attack and surrendered open threes, underscoring glaring perimeter defense issues. Key topics include Cade Cunningham’s shooting struggles under relentless Spurs coverage, the disappointing guard play from Daniss Jenkins and Caris LeVert, and potential rotation changes featuring Kevin Huerter and Marcus Sasser. As inconsistency and injuries pile up, Ku Khahil questions whether the Pistons can rediscover their pre-All-Star break identity ahead of a daunting schedule.
Are Detroit’s playoff hopes slipping away, or can lineup adjustments spark a late-season revival?
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47 Comments
One thing I’ll always respect abt Cade.. he’ll never quit. No matter how bad things get
Duren quit tonight, IMO
As I said before this Pistons team has no shooting they clearly not good enough how embarrassing to watch they were outclassed I don't care how good the Spurs is this piston team supposed to be a good team too and if y'all remember the Pistons and the Spurs a couple years ago on the same level as far as being a bad team so how do they become so much better than the Pistons anyways this is exactly what it's going to look like in the playoffs in cade once again didn't do nothing I admit we're trash this team is trash until they get some good shooting players on this team otherwise they're going to get out shooted by everybody they face smh 🤦🏾♂️
The season is over. Cavs or Celtics will win the East. And if the Pistons should win the east they won’t make it past first round. Duren and Cade need an outside shot. We need shooters beyond the paint. Danis ripped us off big time. How do you give a guy 20 minutes and he goes scoreless JB? Why only give Chaz one stupid minute? The spurs also beat us in the paint. Langdon, earn your money this offseason.
this team is too reliant on Case to generate offense.
If pistons play Charlotte hornets say goodbye 😢
Man this is a really rough stretch of games. Just back to back embarrassments lately. It’s sad that all the Cade talk was so great for weeks and now I see everyone making fun of him. I hate that they played the Cavs and spurs twice in a couple weeks. The losses to these teams feel much worse. I’m worried about Cades confidence he seems off
Since the Charlotte game the pistons havent looked the same
Spurs is just a very bad matchup for us, Wemby negates our strength of scoring in the paint and we of course can’t shoot 3s. Trajen def needs to find a Robin to Cade this summer if we are to take that next step, because Tobias and Duncan ain’t it. And Did we just get bambozzled by Jenkins, get paid and disappear ????!!
Cade usually has size over anyone guarding him but castle is the same height and gives him problems
I have a really bad feeling about this coming month and the playoffs. 😢
Well you guys got your rematch you wanted so bad!!😊
Teens are just got a blueprint on the Pistons as great as Cunningham is he still plays like a old man people are getting inside him speeding him up and I think it's got to be frustrating to be a one-man show you can love your brothers and everything but when you go home out of the playoffs a few years let's get depressing
PISTONS TRADING IVEY WAS A BAD IDEA DUDE WANTED TO BE HERE CRIED THAT MEANS SOMETHING WASNT JUST A JOB IT WAS PASSION LOSING 28 in a row to be trade IVEY one of GODS favs
If JB was quit arguing with the referees so much and argue with his team all these dumb low same turnovers missing defensive assignments hole in his players accountable
Castle is a headache defensively vs Cade. He has the athleticism and strength to make it difficult for Cade. Yeah it helps having Wemby roaming around. Levert & Jenkins were bunz. The bench has been getting exposed as well.
Jenkins has been absolutely awful. He is 11 of 48 shooting in the last few weeks 22 percent
We are not on same level as them. We will not be on same level-against the Cavs or especially Boston in playoffs. They have shooting, we have Duncan Robinson 😂
Sometimes I think Paul Reed is better than Duren in some match ups.
Wemby is 22. Castle is 21. Harper is 20. If the Pistons can't beat this young Spurs team now, they'll never beat a matured near Prime Spurs team in the coming seasons.
Wemby defensively is Cades worst nightmare.
Brought down to earth
Bickerstaff failed to come up with a plan to handle Wemby. He should have put Stewart on Wemby and just not let Wemby move into and around the paint….Stewart muscling out of where Wemby wants to go.
I blame Cade and JB ! At times Cade tries to do too much by his self and everyone else is scared to shoot deferring to him/ when The bench brought them back , JB took them out and the spurs went on another run!
Cade looks slow next to castle and fox
Spurs just waiting for the playoffs to start
Daniss & LeBum got their contracts & pulled a Monty Williams. TrashCan Robinson is like the avatar – disappears when you need him. But this was Trajan's plan all along, put a pile of bricklayers next to Cade and JD & hope it works…
So JB supposedly scaled Ausar’s on ball role back massively for majority of the season because he believed in daniss and Caris as primary/secondary creators. Whenever Ausar had the opportunity (start of season and previous 4 games) he’s shown to be the best secondary option as a playmaker both in transition and providing relief to Cade setting him up off ball in the half court. Now daniss has fallen off and Caris just hasn’t been good. Just terrible player management in my opinion when he was showing real promise to start the season, and even if they were to lean into it again now that’s just a lot of developmental reps they abandoned this season by shoving him in the corner.
All basketball analysts – plus AI – see the San Antonio Spurs as having the deepest bench in the NBA today.
1. #0 Jordan McLaughlin — G — 5’11” — 185 lbs — Apr 9, 1996 (Age 29) — 6 yrs pro — Southern California — Traded from SAC (02/03/25)
2. #1 Victor Wembanyama — F/C — 7’4” — 235 lbs — Jan 4, 2004 (Age 22) — 2 yrs pro — Metropolitans 92 — #1 Pick (2023 Draft)
3. #2 Dylan Harper — G — 6’5” — 215 lbs — Mar 2, 2006 (Age 20) — Rookie — Rutgers — #2 Pick (2025 Draft)
4. #3 Keldon Johnson — F/G — 6’6” — 220 lbs — Oct 11, 1999 (Age 26) — 6 yrs pro — Kentucky — #29 Pick (2019 Draft)
5. #4 De’Aaron Fox — G — 6’3” — 185 lbs — Dec 20, 1997 (Age 28) — 8 yrs pro — Kentucky — Traded from SAC (02/03/25)
6. #5 Stephon Castle — G — 6’6” — 215 lbs — Nov 1, 2004 (Age 21) — 1 yr pro — Connecticut — #4 Pick (2024 Draft)
7. #7 Luke Kornet — C/F — 7’1” — 250 lbs — Jul 15, 1995 (Age 30) — 8 yrs pro — Vanderbilt — Signed (07/07/25)
8. #8 Kelly Olynyk — F/C — 7’0” — 240 lbs — Apr 19, 1991 (Age 34) — 12 yrs pro — Gonzaga — Traded from WAS (07/09/25)
9. #11 Carter Bryant — F — 6’6” — 220 lbs — Nov 26, 2005 (Age 20) — Rookie — Arizona — #14 Pick (2025 Draft)
10. #14 Emanuel Miller — F — 6’5” — 215 lbs — Jun 19, 2000 (Age 25) — 1 yr pro — TCU — Signed (02/23/26)
11. #18 Bismack Biyombo — C — 6’8” — 255 lbs — Aug 28, 1992 (Age 33) — 14 yrs pro — Baloncesto Fuenlabrada — Signed (02/09/25)
12. #24 Devin Vassell — G/F — 6’5” — 200 lbs — Aug 23, 2000 (Age 25) — 5 yrs pro — Florida State — #11 Pick (2020 Draft)
13. #25 David Jones Garcia — G — 6’4” — 210 lbs — Nov 24, 2001 (Age 24) — Rookie — Memphis — Signed (07/23/25)
14. #30 Julian Champagnie — F — 6’7” — 217 lbs — Jun 29, 2001 (Age 24) — 3 yrs pro — St. John’s
15. #40 Harrison Barnes — F — 6’7” — 225 lbs — May 30, 1992 (Age 33) — 13 yrs pro — North Carolina — Traded from SAC (08/08/24)
16. #43 Lindy Waters III — F — 6’5” — 210 lbs — Jul 28, 1997 (Age 28) — 4 yrs pro — Oklahoma State — Signed (07/24/25)
17. #45 Mason Plumlee — F/C — 7’0” — 254 lbs — Mar 5, 1990 (Age 36) — 12 yrs pro — Duke — Signed (02/17/26)
18. #55 Harrison Ingram — F — 6’5” — 230 lbs — Nov 27, 2002 (Age 23) — 1 yr pro — North Carolina — #48 Pick (2024 Draft)
If this roster is fully healthy in the coming weeks, no team in the NBA can beat them in the Finals. Period.
We just got to pray that this is just a drought the Pistons are going through and they will be back to themselves before the playoffs. 🤷🏾♂️ But I wouldn’t watch National media for a while. 😂
JB could easily get Reed and Huerter minutes. He just doesn’t want too. He’s stubborn. Why not play Reed and Stew together with Stew being the spacer? I believe JB is going to hold the Pistons back when they get to win now mode.
🏀🏀🏀. Jaden ivey curse is coming. Believe that ..
It's obvious that the Pistons can't win a playoff series against the Cavs or Spurs or Thunder. They are not ready for a championship.
We need taco right about now or kick Wemby out the nba.. because no matter who is guarding him they will lose..
Go back and look at the combo that brought them back to 8pt before JB pulled them out and put Cade and them back in! ! Why !!??? that combo was ballin ! Bball, Dontae, hueter …
I tried to tell yall about Cade at point guard. Good defense will destroy Cade in the perimeter
The spurs are the most talented young team in NBA history. Probably going to win like 6 rings honestly
Cade is too inconsistent and he will shoot you out of a game
JB needs his head examined playing Caris
Wemby made duren look like a child lol ran him off the court
Glad u bring up Cade pull up 3s
Stew also had shots open needed 5 more 3s. Wemby was just giving him the shot to take
as with the Lions, we should just enjoy the blip. Sure, we have a window, and sure, Tragen has shown typical small market/new GM timidity,
so okay. it's fun to win some games…. it it too early to signal "rebuild" or should we wait until Asar and JD loose 100% of their trade value?
Love them because we love them, not because they deserve it.
Just here from Cleveland
JB is the biggest problem of this team. He gave them the identity of physical defensive team. That's a very good achievement but he does not read, can not read the game. He can't change his game, he can't adapt. He can't come over his wrong beliefs. He is not creative, he can't take risks. He is not a good coach. Levert was looking so stupid so childlike running around. JB started to disgust me saying the same things after every game. He f'ed up this young core. They all think they can't shoot, and everybody thinks they can't shoot. Because their coach does not believe in them. How can they believe in themselves. Their coach only believes in Levert.
Let be honest here we all knew that the pistons wasn't going to beat the Spurs especially in San Antonio they beat them by ten here in Michigan destroy them in Texas
They might lose the number 1seed too
They need to change that chant to :"De – Troit Whiffle Ball" 🤣
JB's stupid conviction in the quality of duncan, Levert and Tobias is killing us. This game should have started with ron, ausar, j.green, beef stew and cade. JB can't try sth different. He is obsessed. Every game we start with the same 5. Every game we are 10 pts behind in 2 minutes. There is sth wrong with what you are doing stupid. Just wake up
If we don't have ron and ausar probably Levert will be playing around 40 mins, and if jenkins keeps playing this bad he will also get at least 25 mins from JB