“I Played With Bron”: Dennis Schroder Brings Up LeBron James While Speaking on Cade Cunningham’s 29-Point First Half

For the first time since 2015, the Detroit Pistons are on a six-game win streak. Their latest win came in a high-scoring match against the Atlanta Hawks that saw seven Pistons players score in the double digits. And the engine powering Motor City was, of course, their superstar point guard, Cade Cunningham.

Cunningham had a stunning night, recording 38 points, 13 assists, 7 rebounds, three blocks, and one steal in the 148-143 victory. What’s more impressive was that he had 29 of his points and 10 of his assists by the half-time break — the first first-half double-double of his career.

After the game, his teammate Dennis Schroder was asked if he had ever seen a teammate go off like Cunningham did in the first half. Having played with LeBron James, the German point guard’s point of reference when it comes to basketball excellence will always be the King.

“I played with Bron [LeBron], I think he can do anything,” the German guard responded.

Despite ending his Lakers stint with some regret, Schroder clearly values the time he spent playing alongside the NBA’s leading scorer. However, the German believes a different Laker makes for a more fitting comparison with Cunningham.

“He reminds me of Luka Doncic a lot… It’s really, really impressive how he picks the defense apart. He’s really unselfish, a lot of people don’t do this — not shooting. I don’t know how many shots he took in the second half but people really don’t do that when they get it going like that,” Schroder added.

It’s certainly a compliment for Cade to be in the same conversation as LeBron and Luka. The 23-year-old has made major strides since last season, proving himself to be a worthy #1 selection and the future face of Motor City.

Cunningham was in the zone against Atlanta

Perhaps it was the battle of the assist leaders that lit a fire under Cade. After all, he’s third in assists per game this season, behind Jokic and his opponent from last night, Trae Young.

Cunningham and Young fired 25 assists between themselves with 38 points each. However, Cunningham easily won the battle by limiting his mistakes to just 3 turnovers, compared to Young’s 7. He was also more efficient than the Hawks point guard from all three scoring levels on Sunday night.

Not only did Cunningham get into the zone and score 29 points in the opening two quarters, he did it while being guarded by Defensive Player of the Year candidate, Dyson Daniels. He reflected on his fiery hot start to the contest after securing the win on the road.

“I didn’t realize I had those numbers until I was walking into the locker room,” Cade said. “I knew I had made a bunch of 3s, but I didn’t know how many points I had or anything… I never did that before but I’ve been in a zone before for sure.”

After their sixth consecutive win, the Pistons are 31-26 and comfortably holding the sixth position in the Eastern Conference. They are three games ahead of seventh-seeded Orlando and nine games ahead of the 10th seed.

Before the season tipped off, we had dubbed them as surprise Play-In contenders. But thanks to Cade, the Pistons have exceeded all expectations and are set to return to the postseason for the first time since 2019.