Pistons' Cade Cunningham and Kevin Durant exchange praise after Suns upset

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The Detroit Pistons’ 133-125 road victory over the Phoenix Suns featured a clash of two superstar talents. Breakout point guard Cade Cunningham led the charge for Detroit, scoring 28 points and delivering 13 assists. The Pistons leaned on Cunningham to close the game late by scoring 13 points, including a dagger triple in the final period, pushing them to a 12-17 record.

Suns’ forward Kevin Durant put together a vintage scoring performance, dropping 43 points on 14-of-26 shooting. Durant paid high compliments to the development of Cunningham during the postgame media session.

“That’s my brother. I got nothing but love for Cade. I’ve known him since he was in high school. He’s always been ahead of his time,” Durant stated. “He can do it all as a 6-foot-7 point guard. I think this could be his year to be an All-Star and take off to go to that next level. It’s always a joy to play against him because we compete.”

Durant and Cunningham have regularly shared public admiration for each other. The 36-year-old forward has been featured as one of the most prolific scorers in league history. Some of Cunningham’s most notable performances through his young four-year career have come against Durant. Cunningham explained to the media after the game what it meant to compete on the floor with Durant.

“It’s an honor every time. I tell him every time we play each other. It’s an honor to be able to compete with him,” Cunningham expressed. “He’s such a basketball junkie. I’ve had the chance to workout with him and see what he’s like in the offseason. It’s an honor to be able to play against him, somebody I watched as a kid. To be on the floor with him now going at him and him going at me, it’s a lot of fun.”

The two stars traded haymakers late in the fourth quarter when trying to fight for the lead. Durant scored eleven points in the final period during the Phoenix comeback effort. Cunningham put the game out of reach with a three-pointer off the wing with 33 seconds left putting the Pistons up seven.

Strong impact by Jaden Ivey in return

The Pistons have played their last two games without starting shooting guard Jaden Ivey due to injury (knee). Ivey was activated to face the Suns and played a major role in Detroit’s victory. The third-year combo guard almost finished with a triple double by recording 20 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists.

Ivey has excelled as a secondary playmaker to take pressure off of Cunningham. His improved shooting has also done wonders for Detroit in taking advantage of open looks from double teams. Ivey was incredibly efficient shooting 7-14 from the field and 4-6 from three-point range.

The effort on the defensive end was also a positive in Ivey’s game. He generated one steal and deflected a number of passes to help create transition opportunities for Detroit.

Bounce back team effort after Jazz letdown

Saturday night’s win was a much-needed rebound after Detroit’s struggling loss against the Utah Jazz Thursday. After allowing 48 first-quarter points to Utah, the Pistons opened as the aggressors against the Suns scoring 41 points in the first. Phoenix only led once by two points early in the first quarter and never stole the lead back on their home floor against Detroit.

Seven different Pistons scored in double figures in a balanced team attack. Guard Malik Beasley scored 18 points as he returned back to his reserve role. Center Jalen Duren remained out of foul trouble and played a significant role scoring 17 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. Swingman Tim Hardaway Jr. put up 16 points to support the Pistons. Cunningham spoke on how the loss to Utah served as motivation for Saturday’s victorious effort.

“Obviously that last game left a bad taste in everybody’s mouth. We wanted to get back on track, we wanted to get a rhythm again and this was a great game to do that,” Cunningham explained to the press. “Lots of great players on the Suns so it was a lot of motivation to get this one done. We got a lot of contribution from everybody and I thought it was a great night for us.”

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