Madison Square Garden has a way of revealing exactly who a player is. The lights are brighter, the stakes feel higher, and the crowd makes sure you earn every bucket. On Thursday night, Cade Cunningham walked into the world’s most famous arena, shorthanded and unbothered, and put on the kind of performance that shifts award conversations.
The Detroit Pistons dismantled the New York Knicks 126-111, completing a season sweep of one of the Eastern Conference’s most dangerous teams and they did it without Jalen Duren and Isaiah Stewart, their two best big men, who were serving suspensions stemming from an altercation in Charlotte before the All-Star break. Cunningham filled every void, finishing with 42 points, 13 assists, eight rebounds, and two blocks while shooting 5-of-11 from three. It was the kind of line that doesn’t just win games it wins arguments.
Cunningham owns MSG
There’s something specifically interesting about what Cunningham does at Madison Square Garden. In last season’s playoffs, he averaged 26 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 7.7 assists across three games in New York, leading the Pistons to both of their wins in that series. Thursday was more of the same. Whether the Knicks threw OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges, or newly acquired Jeremy Sochan at him late in the game, none of it mattered. Cunningham operated at his own pace, on his own terms, against every defensive look New York could offer.
The Knicks, one of the league’s premier three-point shooting teams, finished just 8-of-35 from deep including a stretch where they missed 15 consecutive attempts in the first half. That’s not coincidence. That’s Detroit’s defense, and Cunningham anchoring every possession on both ends.
The MVP case, in real time
Cunningham had previously framed the MVP award as something that would arrive naturally as a byproduct of team success rather than an individual pursuit. That framing is still intact, but his posture around the conversation has shifted. He’s no longer deflecting. He believes he’s the best player in the league this season, and he’s comfortable saying so while leaving the final judgment to the voters.
For anyone who needs a résumé: Cunningham is averaging 25.7 points per game, 9.7 assists second in the entire NBA and 5.7 rebounds. He’s doing it on the team with the best record in basketball. Detroit sits at 41-13, recently overtaking the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder for the top spot in the league. The Pistons lead the Eastern Conference by 5.5 games over the Boston Celtics and own a 19-7 road record, one win shy of matching OKC’s mark away from home.
Shorthanded and still dominant
What made Thursday’s performance particularly striking was the context. The Knicks had been beaten twice already in Detroit over the past few weeks and were motivated to make a point at home. They had every reason to believe a Pistons team missing two starting-caliber bigs might finally be vulnerable. Instead, Detroit played with the same edge and defensive intensity coach J.B. Bickerstaff has stressed all season a point he was careful to make after the game, noting that this is simply how the Pistons play, regardless of opponent.
Bickerstaff has also been clear that Cunningham’s MVP candidacy isn’t built on any single performance. It’s been a season-long body of work dominant on both ends, impacting winning in ways that don’t always show up cleanly in box scores. Teammate Tobias Harris put it another way, drawing a distinction between players who want the trophy and players who want championships. According to Harris, Cunningham is firmly in the second category, and that difference is visible every night.
Detroit’s place in history
The Pistons are in genuinely historic territory. Since MVP voting began in its current form in 1980, the highest a Detroit player ever finished was Grant Hill in 1997, when he ran second to Michael Jordan and Karl Malone. Isiah Thomas placed fifth in 1984. Cunningham has a real shot at eclipsing both, which would be a franchise first in over four decades.
Detroit is also 3-1 against second-place Boston and 1-1 against fourth-place Cleveland this season, making it clear the record isn’t a product of a soft schedule. The Pistons are beating good teams repeatedly, convincingly, and in the buildings where it’s hardest to win.
With a healthy roster and two months of regular season left, the only real question isn’t whether Cunningham belongs in the MVP conversation. It’s whether anyone can make a stronger case before the votes are cast.
