Jaden Ivey’s Pistons role has changed. Here’s how he’s handling it
Jaden Ivey spoke Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025, at Detroit Pistons practice about overcoming injuries, his role change and mindset.
Cade Cunningham put on a show in Boston, knocking down the deciding baskets late in the fourth quarter to help the Detroit Pistons avenge last month’s loss to the Celtics.
Cunningham finished with 32 points, 10 assists and knocked down a season-high six 3-pointers to lead the Pistons (21-5) to a 112-105 win at TD Garden. He scored nine points in the final period and iced the win with back-to-back scores over Derrick White in the final two minutes — a pull-up midrange jumper, followed by a spinning turnaround jumper that pushed the Pistons’ lead to five with 1:13 to play.
The Pistons have now won six of eight games since the Celtics snapped their 13-game winning streak in Boston on Nov. 26.
Tobias Harris (13 points, seven rebounds), Caris LeVert (13 points) and Jaden Ivey (10 points) also scored in double figures. Boston was led by Jaylen Brown (34 points, eight rebounds and seven assists) and White (31 points), who carried a Celtics squad that shot just 10-for-39 (25.6%) from 3. The Celtics missed all eight of their 3-point tries in the second quarter and made just one of 10 in the third.
The Pistons outscored the Celtics by 11 points in the second half to take control of a game that had 15 lead changes and seven ties. They also held Boston to 40% shooting in the second half.
With the NBA Cup final between the San Antonio Spurs and New York Knicks on Tuesday, the Pistons will get an extra day of rest for their next game, against the Mavericks in Dallas on Thursday (8:30, FanDuel Sports Network Detroit).
Cunningham lights up Celtics from 3, closes gameÂ
It has been a strong start to the season for Cunningham in every area except one. After shooting about 36% from 3 his past two seasons, he had only made 30.7% of his attempts entering Monday — his lowest percentage in a full season. Against the Celtics, he finally found his outside touch.Â
Cunningham got going immediately, knocking down a pull-up 3 and then a stepback 3-pointer within the first five minutes of the game. His next 3 — a stepback with 7:30 to play in the second quarter — came amid a 16-2 Pistons run he largely was responsible for. Cunningham sparked the run with a hook in the paint before finding Javonte Green in the corner for a 3 and assisting an Ivey layup.Â
After entering halftime with 13 points and seven assists, Cunningham got going in the second half with 19 points. His final 3-pointer extended the Pistons’ lead to six with less than eight minutes left. After picking up his fifth foul, he sat on the bench with 7:12 on the clock and returned to close the game out with 4:21 remaining.Â
Bench steps up in second half
The Pistons’ bench outscored the Celtics’ second unit 27-5 in the second half, helping the Pistons stay afloat when Cunningham sat at the end of the third and midway through the fourth.Â
LeVert scored all 13 of his points in the second half on 5-for-8 shooting. His best stretch came at the end of the third quarter, when he finished a three-point play, knocked down a 3-pointer and stole the ball from Hugo Gonzalez for a fastbreak dunk in the final three minutes.Â
Ivey kept the offense moving late in the third with a three-point play, a driving layup and an assist to Ron Holland. And Green was responsible for two of the biggest plays of the fourth period. His steal and thunderous fastbreak dunk with about six minutes to play extended the Pistons’ lead to nine, 103-94. He also hit a 3-pointer after Cunningham subbed out to push the lead to eight.
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