Cade Cunningham finished seventh ESPN's final MVP straw poll for the 24-25 season and is now considered a virtual lock to make an All-NBA team. Cunningham is averaging 25.7 points, 6.1 rebounds and 9.2 assists and has the Detroit Pistons firmly in the playoffs with one of the NBA's most impressive rapid turnarounds considering their 14-68 record in 23-24.
Cunningham and the Pistons agreed to a five-year max contract during the 2024 offseason that also contained the Rose Rule provision, which will increase the value from $224 million to $269 million if he makes an All-NBA team this season. Cunningham's contract will start at 30 percent of the salary cap as opposed to 25 percent.
"I'm genuinely excited to see what he, and they, can do," a West executive said. "They just have to go through it and see what your talent looks like on that stage. ...
"Let's see how he does against game planning for him over a seven-game series. There's a lot of things you don't know until you go through it."
