DET 110, CHA 104: Cade Cunningham Tops All Fantasy Scorers With 53 ESPN FP
Maya Chen
UX Designer ยท Golden State Warriors fan
Cade Cunningham Goes Nuclear, Pistons Steal Low-Scoring Grind in Charlotte
Cade Cunningham just reminded everyone why he's All-NBA Second Team. The dude put on a clinic against Charlotte, dropping 54.3 Yahoo fantasy points on a 33/9/7 line with elite efficiency (12-27 FG, 7-7 FT). That's +7.9 points above his season average. When Cade's hitting 7-of-7 from the stripe and orchestrating an offense, the Pistons are a different team. This wasn't a career night fluked out, this was him playing at his legitimate ceiling. If you own him, you're keeping him locked in. If you don't, this game confirms what we already knew, you probably got priced out at draft.
| Player | ESPN FP | Yahoo FP | Tonight | Season Avg | +/- Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cade Cunningham | 53.0 | 54.3 | 33/9/7 | 25.1/5.5/9.7 | +7.9 |
| Brandon Miller | 41.0 | 38.1 | 24/3/3 | 20.3/4.7/3.3 | +3.7 |
| Kon Knueppel | 39.0 | 33.5 | 20/5/3 | 18.9/5.5/3.6 | +1.1 |
| Paul Reed | 30.0 | 28.1 | 12/3/1 | 5.7/4.3/1.2 | +6.3 |
| LaMelo Ball | 24.0 | 27.8 | 20/4/4 | 19.1/4.8/7.5 | +0.9 |
| Grant Williams | 32.0 | 26.9 | 12/2/5 | 5.9/3.8/1.0 | +6.1 |
| Duncan Robinson | 33.0 | 26.6 | 18/3/4 | 12.1/2.7/1.8 | +5.9 |
| Jalen Duren | 29.0 | 26.0 | 15/5/2 | 17.7/10.5/1.7 | -2.7 |
| Ausar Thompson | 22.0 | 23.6 | 6/8/2 | 10.4/6.0/2.7 | -4.4 |
| Tobias Harris | 22.0 | 23.5 | 11/5/1 | 13.5/4.7/2.4 | -2.5 |
Here's the thing about this Pistons win, 110-104 final: it was ugly. Both offenses were grinding through mud. But that's actually where Duncan Robinson and Paul Reed carved out value. Robinson's 26.6 Yahoo FP (18/3/4) looks pedestrian on the stat sheet, but he went 8-10 from the field. That's not a fluke, that's elite shooting efficiency in a game where baskets were hard to come by. He's +5.9 above his season average. Reed meanwhile put up 28.1 Yahoo FP in just 18 minutes off the bench with 12/3/1 and 5-8 from the stripe. Dude's got 2.0 blocks and 2.0 steals too. That's the kind of per-minute efficiency that makes you wonder why he's not getting more run.
LaMelo Ball walked the line between disappointing and acceptable. He finished 27.8 Yahoo FP (20/4/4) with that classic LaMelo stat line, 8-22 shooting. He's only +0.9 above his season average, which tells you this was pretty much what you'd expect. The Hornets couldn't get anything going offensively, and LaMelo took 22 shots trying to carry them out of it. If you have him, he's still your guy, but nights like this remind you why his efficiency is always a conversation. He's still 98.9% owned in ESPN leagues so there's nowhere to run anyway.
Brandon Miller had a solid night at 38.1 Yahoo FP (24/3/3) and +3.7 above season average. Charlotte's second-leading scorer was also Charlotte's best shooter (8-18 FG but 4-3PM with perfect FT). He's meeting expectations more than exceeding them, which in a loss is still something to appreciate. Not a buy signal, but not a sell either.
The real Charlotte story might be Grant Williams popping for 26.9 Yahoo FP in 25 minutes off the bench. That's +6.1 above his season average with 12/2/5 and 4-4 from the stripe. He's a 0.4% owned player in ESPN, meaning if he's available in your league, grab him. Hornets are thin on wings and his minutes are climbing. Kon Knueppel (33.5 Yahoo FP, 20/5/3 with 5 threes) also stayed productive, hitting from deep in a low-scoring game. These role players kept Charlotte competitive when LaMelo couldn't execute.
On the Pistons side, Jalen Duren managed 26.0 Yahoo FP (15/5/2) despite being -2.7 below his season average. He's usually a rebounder and he got boards tonight (5), but only 20 minutes of action. That's the real story, Duren's in a reduced role and it's eating into his upside. Tobias Harris finished 23.5 Yahoo FP (11/5/1) in 34 minutes, essentially a baseline contribution. Ausar Thompson went 23.6 Yahoo FP (6/8/2/2 steals) with better defense than offense, which tracks for him. He's got games like this where defense carries the fantasy load.
The bottom line: Cade Cunningham's game is sustainable because that's his ceiling when he's healthy and engaged. Everyone else from this game is just background noise except Grant Williams, who's worth a speculative add if he's still there. This wasn't pretty basketball, but Pistons stole one in a grind, and that's all that matters in February.