This isn’t how it’s supposed to work.
When teams land the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft, it’s supposed to be a solution — one that occurs sooner than later. Often, those teams struggle for a season or two before hitting their stride. When that arrow starts pointing up, it stays pointing up.
That hasn’t been the case for Cade Cunningham and the Detroit Pistons.
While Cunningham has more than flashed his immense potential over his first three seasons, the team has done nothing with it. Detroit has won 23% of its games (32-106 record) with him on the floor and 20% (22-86) without him.