Cade Cunningham reminded everyone on Thursday why he is one of the elite players in the NBA, carrying the Detroit Pistons past the Washington Wizards, 144-140, in double overtime at Capital One Arena.
Cunningham put the Pistons on his back in crunch time, hitting timely basket after timely basket. He finished with a career-high 52 points, adding five rebounds and 11 assists. He shot 16-of-25 from the field, including 3-of-5 from long distance, and 17-of-18 from the free-throw line.
In the process, he also made history, according to OptaSTATS.
“Cade Cunningham of the Detroit Pistons is the only NBA player with 50+ points, 10+ assists, and zero turnovers in a game (since turnovers were first officially tracked in 1977-78),” noted OptaSTATS on X.
The 25-year-old guard surpassed his previous career-high of 46 points, which he scored last year—also against the Wizards.
Cunningham scored 12 points in the two extensions, including the insurance bucket with 25.3 seconds left, to keep the Pistons afloat, teaming up with Ausar Thompson and Duncan Robinson down the stretch.
Thompson had a triple-double of 17 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists, while Robinson contributed 13 points and three rebounds. Daniss Jenkins tallied 21 points, six rebounds, and two steals.
The Wizards threw multiple defenders at Cunningham, including Trae Young, AJ Dybantsa, Kyshawn George, and Bilal Coulibaly, but the two-time All-NBA remained unbothered, scoring in an array of moves from all angles.
The Pistons swept their back-to-back set against the Wizards and improved to 8-3. Washington fell to 4-9.
Young had 37 points and 14 assists to lead the Wizards, while Anthony Davis added 30 points, 15 rebounds, and four assists.
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