NEW YORK — Once again, Cade Cunningham had the ball in his hands down the stretch for the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday. In Game 5 of the Pistons’ first-round series against the New York Knicks, the star guard scored 13 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter, including a pull-up 3 with about four minutes to play, a clutch floater a couple of minutes later and a pair of free throws that sealed the 106-103 victory in the final seconds.
This was not, however, The Cade Cunningham Show. At halftime, the All-Star guard had four points on 2-for-8 shooting. He did an excellent job running the team, which often meant getting off the ball and trusting his teammates. The Knicks consistently blitzed Cunningham’s pick-and-rolls, effectively daring the other Pistons to beat them. Over and over again, they did.
More specifically, 22-year-old guard Ausar Thompson and 21-year-old center Jalen Duren did. And their efforts were critical as the Pistons kept their season alive and sent the series back to Detroit for Game 6 on Thursday.
Thompson finished with 22 points on 8-for-10 shooting, plus seven rebounds, two blocks and 29 minutes of all-world defense against New York star Jalen Brunson.
“I think it all started with Ausar and his defense,” Detroit coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “He was phenomenal defensively tonight.”
Thompson has been matched up with Brunson at the beginning of every game this series, but, entering Game 5, he hadn’t played many fourth-quarter minutes because of a combination of foul trouble and his lack of shooting gravity. On Tuesday, Brunson finished with just 16 points on 4-for-16 shooting, plus four turnovers. This wasn’t all Thompson’s doing, but Brunson had trouble creating space against Thompson one-on-one and had to work to get Thompson switched off of him.
Thompson said that he was “being aggressive, but being smart, knowing what positions I’m in and not letting [Brunson] take advantage of that.”
On one second-quarter possession, Brunson thought he’d found an easy two points in transition, only for Thompson to soar in from behind for a spectacular chasedown block:
Brunson is not just an elite scorer, he’s a master of the dark art of foul-drawing. He’s constantly hesitating, pump-faking and pivoting, always looking to take advantage of even the tiniest misstep. On Tuesday, Thompson finished with five fouls, but was never in foul trouble. He didn’t pick up any in the first half, and his last was an intentional foul to prevent the Knicks from getting up a 3-pointer right at the end of the game.
“The fun part is he gets to see the guy over and over and over again and then he grows every single game on understanding what’s the best way to defend him and how to make it so difficult,” Bickerstaff said. “You remember earlier in the series, he got a couple of cheap [fouls] in the backcourt because he was over-pressuring. Now you see him working his way back, still turning him, but he’s not getting those cheap ones, he’s able to stay on the floor and be impactful. So it’s fun to see him learn and go out and execute.”
Pistons guard Dennis Schröder said that Thompson is “one of the best defenders I’ve seen,” thanks to his outrageous athleticism and ability to move his feet.
“When he gets a little bit smarter with it — stays down on pump fakes and the little things — then he’s going to be Defensive Player of the Year,” Schröder said. “I see that.”
Thompson is not a threat from 3-point range, but he repeatedly hurt New York by operating out of the dunker spot. On three separate possessions, he finished in the paint after Cunningham drew two to the ball on the perimeter and found Duren in the pocket. On another, he threw down an alley-oop from Thompson.
Detroit went into the game with the intention of making the most of its 4-on-3 opportunities. “I’m super comfortable when they [blitz Cunningham],” Thompson said. “I get excited when they do it, honestly.” He credited Cunningham and Duren for creating opportunities for him.
Thompson’s success was a function of the Pistons collectively understanding how to exploit the Knicks. They didn’t play anything close to a perfect game offensively — they shot 8 for 29 (27.6%) from deep — but they knew where the pressure points were.
“We wanted to keep playing fast, making sure we keep playing fast, put Brunson in action and Karl-Anthony Towns as well,” Schröder said.
Schröder said it was “easy basketball on the offensive end.” Cunningham is “the head of the snake,” he said, “doing a great job just putting people in place. [Duren] playing in the pocket, finding [Thompson] for quick dunks. It was tremendous today. I think the young guys did a great job.”
Duren finished with nine points, 14 rebounds (including seven on the offensive glass), six assists and two blocks in 33 minutes. In short-roll situations, he is “a really good passer and playmaker,” Bickerstaff said. In this series, it’s simply about “understanding the situation, reading the defense and then being able to complete the play.”
Cunningham carries a heavy load for the Pistons. As a leader, though, part of his job is to empower his teammates, especially when the opposing team is trying to get the ball out of his hands. If New York decides to change its strategy, Detroit will adjust accordingly, but Cunningham welcomes the treatment he’s getting now.
“It’s fun seeing us move the ball around and get dunks, get layups, having efficient offense,” Cunningham said. “I mean, that’s what you want as a coach, a team, a point guard. I mean, that’s everything you dream of.”
