Detroit Pistons owner Tom Gores speaks to media before home opener
Detroit Pistons owner Tom Gores speaks to the media before the 2025-26 home opener at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit on Sunday, Oct. 26.
Both the Cleveland Cavaliers and Detroit Pistons were playing their third game in fourth nights, but the former arrived to Little Caesars Arena with far more energy.
The Pistons were blown out by the Cavaliers 116-95 and fell to 2-2 overall. It was comfortably the Pistons’ worst offensive performance of this young season, shooting just 37.9% overall with 25 turnovers and 29 fouls.
They trailed by as many as 35 points in the fourth quarter before a late run after both teams emptied their benches.
It also was Cunningham’s worst game of the season, with him finishing with 12 points, five assists, four rebounds and five turnovers on 3-for-14 overall shooting. The Pistons’ second leading scorer was Ron Holland (11 points), and Tobias Harris (10 points) was their only other player to reach double figures.
Meanwhile, the Cavaliers knocked down 45.9% of their attempts and were led by a red-hot performance from Donovan Mitchell, who scored 35 points on 13-for-18 overall shooting.
Cunningham bottled up
After a physical win over the Boston Celtics on Sunday, Cunningham was listed as “probable” on Monday’s injury report with a left hip contusion and right facial contusion. After a face-to-face collision with Celtics center Neemias Queta, there was visible swelling on Cunningham’s right cheek.
It’s unclear if the injuries impacted Cunningham’s performance against the Cavaliers, but what was clear that he wasn’t himself. Nearly 20 minutes separated Cunningham’s first made field goal, and his second. After a layup midway through the first quarter, he missed his next nine shots before knocking down a 3-pointer at the 9:19 mark of the third quarter.
At halftime, he had four points and three assists on 1-for-10 overall shooting. The Pistons led 18-17 after his first bucket, and trailed 74-46 when he knocked down the 3-pointer at the 9:19 mark of the third – a 29-point swing.
The fifth-year guard said Sunday he’s had trouble handling double teams through the first few games, and the Cavaliers’ defense and Detroit’s less-than-ideal spacing in the starting lineup created a tough environment for him.
With Cunningham struggling, the rest of the Pistons’ offense collapsed. They shot just 5-for-24 in the second period (20.8%), with Cunningham going 0-for-7 in the stretch.
Dreadful second quarter costs Pistons
The Pistons led 24-22 late in the first quarter before the Cavaliers pulled away for good, closing the period period with an 11-0 run. They extended the run to 25-2 before a layup by Duncan Robinson snapped the streak with 5:01 to play until halftime. Detroit missed 15 consecutive shots before Robinson’s layup with several good looks at the rim failing to convert.
Defensively, the Pistons were better. They held the Cavaliers to just 8-for-21 overall shooting in the second quarter (38.1%) but were outscored 30-17 because of fouling and turnovers. They committed 11 personal fouls, and the Cavaliers converted 11 of 15 free throw attempts. Cleveland also scored five points off of five Pistons turnovers.
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