Cade's Mental Lapses late in the Warriors game

[Rip32]

I wonder if it was related to him being fatigue or not really comfortable facing that quick pressure. Seems like the Warriors blitz him a lot during the game. Later in the game, it really got to him.

Cade has improved a lot! I admit, I was one of his critics

[Cowology]

I don't agree with this characterization. These are not "mental lapses", which generally reflect a lack of concentration or effort. This isn't that.

[blog_pistons]

I wonder if it was related to him being fatigue or not really comfortable facing that quick pressure. Seems like the Warriors blitz him a lot during the game. Later in the game, it really got to him.

Cade has improved a lot! I admit, I was one of his critics

Come on this player has played all star, for a game where he may have made a mistake, you are going to open a thread to criticize him. He is young, he is progressing and he needs to make mistakes to grow.

[ComboGuardCity]

When you’re a high usage player you will make mistakes all throughout the games. The only ones that are highlighted are the ones in the last two minutes. Hell continue to cut down on them but I don’t think it has to do with mental pressure.

[topsearch92]

Nitpicking every loss and what faults players have seems like something we had to do last season because there wasn’t much to enjoy. Tobias is old, Case has turnovers, Beef Stew is ground bound, Duren lacks consistency, Thompson can’t shoot.Hardaway is a cone on defense.
We have an awesome core. Tons of potential and room for growth for the majority. We played a heck of a game yesterday and lost on a 3 Draymomd took. It’s not like an open Curry shot. Making the playoffs will be a huge accomplishment. Enjoy every win and don’t get disappointed in loses to quality teams or even off nights for a young growing squad

[zeebneeb]

Very shocking to see such a big Pistons fan, making a thread like this.

The charade continues.

[breezypeezy]

This may be the last time Curry or Draymond ever beat Cade. Cade is rising and these two are not really going to be on his level much longer.
Thats my take away.

[MrBigShot]

We played a good game and narrowly lost. Cade is putting up 27/9/5 on 51/41/89 post all star break.

Yeah his turnovers cost us, and his handle is too loose, but you take with the good with the bad and hope for improvement. I love what i've seen from Cade this season.

[bstein14]

One thing with Cade, he moves at his own pace out there when he starts to try and break down a defender.... there are pros and cons but one of the cons is for sure a bit more likely to get a crossover swiped at. On the flip side, guys like Ivey, Schroeder and even Ausar are much quicker on the moves they make sometimes they border almost on out of control it feels whereas Cade feels more slow and methodical on many of the moves he makes but that does give the defender a bit more time to react.

[BadMofoPimp]

Cade didn't look like he was having mental lapses as he looked locked in to me. He really wanted to win. Sometimes, plays just don't go the way they want.

[tmorgan]

Yeah, hardly mental lapses. Maybe getting tired, and certainly he still has some handle issues. But not mental.

[Kalamazoo317]

I think the rest of the team needs to get better at giving Cade good passing lanes when he's being doubled and tripled and the refs are letting the defenders foul the crap out of him.

[flow]

I hadn't read this thread yesterday. Now I know what Detroitsho was talking about last night.

This is definitely a legitimate thread. Whether its mental lapses, poor handles, or both, there's an issue. And it's not blasphemy to admit it. Cade shouldn't be bringing the ball up/initiating offense after makes in tight games. He doesn't handle the blitzes/traps well at all. And every team realizes it now. Doesn't mean he's not a great player. Don't worry, he is. But play him off the ball. Run him off screens. No one's going to blitz Schroder or Ausar with Cade running around. And if they do, both seem more comfortable with it than Cade does.

[Billl]

The team is MUCH improved this year so cade isn't seeing nearly as much "ignore everyone and quadruple team cade", but it does happen occasionally. And he often presses a bit and tries to make plays still vs just moving the ball and trusting his teammates. We still need some improved secondary ball handling though because right now, if Beasley isn't hot, we often don't get a good shot in the halfcourt unless cade is creating it. Hopefully Ausar grows into that and Ivey comes back healthy , but right now, it gets pretty ugly when he's not handling.

[LaSheed]

Get Cade a legit #2. That #2 helps Cade. Cade has less turnovers. Cade is happy. We are happy.

[jars]

It's not a mental lapse, but the pressure in the last 2 minutes of a close NBA game like this one is more intense than any other basketball situation Cade has been in. Remember, Cade has played in more wins this year than his past 3 years combined. You can't expect anyone to just know how to react. He has to experience it to learn.

His handle in traps and isolations seems to be targeted by oppositions right now, but this is something he can fix. I actually think he has really strong mental fortitude & will come back next season more prepared. Overall, this is the sort of progression you'd expect for a young all-star player like Cade who is finally in these types of games semi-regularly.

At the start of the season I was a Cade non-believer, but he has converted me. Turnover trends at the end of games are fixable.

[blog_pistons]

Cade Cunningham last 12 games:

26.3 PPG
8.3 APG
4.8 RPG
52% FG
41% 3FG
89% FT
63% TS!!
5.1 TPG
+129

[bstein14]

Cade Cunningham last 12 games:

26.3 PPG
8.3 APG
4.8 RPG
52% FG
41% 3FG
89% FT
63% TS!!
5.1 TPG
+129

That 63% TS is kind of what I was hoping for all along with him... It was always about improving scoring efficiency for him and for us to go from bad to good. 50% in his first two seasons, 54.6% last year and now his average for this season is 56.3% which is still lower than league average but he's been trending upwards.

Hate to say it, but it was almost like a switch flipped when Ivey when down with that injury on January 1st the team has been playing great since then and Cade's advanced numbers are great as well. I know we started to see improved play towards the end of December and Ivey was part of that group as well but overall Cade's numbers in 2025 much better than his numbers in Oct/Nov/Dec of 2024.

[flow]

Cade Cunningham last 12 games:

26.3 PPG
8.3 APG
4.8 RPG
52% FG
41% 3FG
89% FT
63% TS!!
5.1 TPG
+129

All of that is both great, and irrelevant to the issue.

.

[Invictus88]

Cade Cunningham last 12 games:

26.3 PPG
8.3 APG
4.8 RPG
52% FG
41% 3FG
89% FT
63% TS!!
5.1 TPG
+129

That 63% TS is kind of what I was hoping for all along with him... It was always about improving scoring efficiency for him and for us to go from bad to good. 50% in his first two seasons, 54.6% last year and now his average for this season is 56.3% which is still lower than league average but he's been trending upwards.

Hate to say it, but it was almost like a switch flipped when Ivey when down with that injury on January 1st the team has been playing great since then and Cade's advanced numbers are great as well. I know we started to see improved play towards the end of December and Ivey was part of that group as well but overall Cade's numbers in 2025 much better than his numbers in Oct/Nov/Dec of 2024.

Why do people keep saying this? They won 4 out of their last 5 before he went down with an injury and he was playing well. It was a shame.

The actual primary reason for the turnaround is Ausar knocking off his rust and getting more minutes. It completely transformed our defense (completely revitalizing Duren) which, in turn, led to more fast break points etc and a more frenetic pace in general.

Can we stop with this addition by subtraction nonsense with Ivey? Because that's what it is.