Cade Cunningham's Garden debut a flop; Jalen Green set to return

NEW YORK – There was no “motorCade" for the Detroit Pistons in the world’s famous and NBA players’ most favorite arena. Instead, Kemba Walker and the New York Knicks had a walk in the park.

Top rookie pick Cade Cunningham’s much-awaited debut at the Madison Square Garden ended in a Detroit Pistons 105-91 loss at the hands of the New York Knicks Tuesday night (Wednesday, Manila time). 

Cunningham was emblematic of the Pistons’ awful shooting night. 

“We missed too many shots. At the end of the night, our percentages — 36 from the field, 24 from 3-point range — it’s going to be hard to win against a good basketball team on the road with those type of shooting percentages,” said Pistons acting coach Rex Kalamian, who filled in for Dwane Casey (personal reasons). 

The No.1 overall pick was 2-for-13 from the floor and missed his two attempts from downtown. Cunningham also had a team-high five turnovers that negated his seven points, nine rebounds, and eight assists. He registered a team-worst -18 plus-minus for the Pistons, meaning they were outscored by 18 points when he was on the court. 

On the other hand, Walker scored nine of his 21 points in the fourth quarter to help the Knicks snap a five-game losing skid at home. Walker has now scored 50 points since his return to the starting lineup two games ago following nine straight DNPs. 

But it wasn’t only Walker who sparkled for the Knicks. His backcourt running mate Evan Fournier played a solid game on both ends of the floor. The French gunner made the top rookie pick bleed for his points. 

Fournier finished with 22 points and hounded Cunningham all night long. 

“When Evan is locked in and focused, he’s capable of playing very good defense,” New York coach Tom Thibodeau said. 

It was Cunningham’s second straight poor scoring outing after a four-point effort against Miami though the Pistons won that game to end a 14-game slide. His consecutive dud performances came on the heels of an impressive 21-point, 11-assist against a Houston team that was missing second overall pick Jalen Green last Saturday. 

Green is set to return on Thursday (Friday in Manila) when the Rockets face the Indiana Pacers in Indianapolis after missing one month due to a hamstring injury. 

Cunningham’s Garden debut was the worst shooting performance among the top three picks this season. 

Green fared better with 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting and hit two triples in his first NBA game in New York last month. Third overall pick Evan Mobley had the best game among rookies. The Cavaliers’ rookie big man scored a career-high 26 points on 11-of-15 shooting and filled up the stats sheet with nine rebounds, five assists, one steal, and one blocked shot. Most importantly, he came away with a win at the Garden. 

“We got to play a lot tougher here. I think being in New York, you’re going to get every team’s best shot. I know what it was like on both ends when I was here in the 90s, what was like when I was coaching an opponent. I know how the players feel about coming to play in the Madison Square Garden,” Thibodeau said. “It’s a special place.”

Cunningham failed to bring his A-game in an unforgettable debut at the mecca. 

Every star in the league has had a memorable Garden performance. If Cunningham is to realize his star potential, he has to add a legendary performance at the iconic arena to his resume. His shot for redemption has to wait until next season after he missed the Pistons’ first New York trip with an ankle injury last October. 

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Alder Almo is a former senior sportswriter for Philstar.com and NBA.com Philippines. He is now based in Jersey City, New Jersey, and writes for the New York-based sports website empiresportsmedia.com.