Cade Cunningham will be an All-Star starter for the first time in his career. Cunningham, who was a reserve All-Star last year, received enough votes to be one of the top-5 starters in the Eastern Conference.
Cunningham will be Detroit’s first All-Star starter since … ugh … Allen Iverson in 2009.
There was little question Cunningham would get the nod, as he was one of the first in the Eastern Conference to rack up more than a million fan votes, and his support never waned in subsequent ballots. He’s also the lead guard on the Eastern Conference’s best team, and is averaging 25.9 points and 9.6 assists for the Pistons.
NBA All-Star starters in the Eastern Conference are:
- Cade Cunningham, Detroit Pistons
- Jalen Brunson, New York Knicks
- Tyrese Maxey, Philadelphia 76ers
- Jaylen Brown, Boston Celtics
- Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks
NBA All-Star starters in the Western Conference are:
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder
- Luka Doncic, Los Angeles Lakers
- Steph Curry, Golden State Warriors
- Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio Spurs
- Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets
The All-Star game will take place on Feb. 15 at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles and be broadcast on NBC and Peacock.
It’s been quite the come-up for Cunningham the past two seasons. During his first year, the Pistons won just 23 games, and he finished a distant third in Rookie of the Year voting behind winner Scottie Barnes and runner-up Evan Mobley.
His sophomore year was derailed by a hip injury that sidelined him for all but 12 games while his team sputtered to just 17 wins. His third year was the disastrous Monty Williams year and another last-place finish.
At the time, folks were wondering if Cunningham was just a tall complementary player without the juice to be the first option on a competitive team. By 2024, Cunningham’s star had faded to the point that if you look at a list like ESPN’s 25 under 25, he was ranked all the way at 13th. The 12 players ahead of him?
LaMelo Ball, Scottie Barnes, Alperen Sengun, Jalen Williams, Evan Mobley, Tyrese Maxey, Tyrese Haliburton, Chet Holmgren, Franz Wagner, Paolo Banchero, Anthony Edwards, and Victor Wembenyama.
What a difference two years can make. Troy Weaver and Monty Williams are shown the door, and their replacements Trajan Langdon and JB Bickerstaff instantly right the ship. The Pistons put quality veterans and shooting around Cade, and he blossomed. The team was the first to triple its win total from one season to the next, and they made the playoffs.
This year, they have set their sights considerably higher, and at the midway point, they find themselves the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference with a 4.5 game lead over the Boston Celtics.
The format of the All-Star game will look different yet again this season. There will be three eight-man teams — two with U.S. players, one with international players — and they will compete in a round robin format.
The games will be short, and the rosters will be big — eight players suiting up for 12-minute games. So who actually gets to play will be interesting, confusing, and challenging.
The All-Star reserves will be announced later, and Jalen Duren has the inside track to get his first All-Star nod. That would give the Pistons multiple All-Stars for the first time since Richard Hamilton and Ben Wallace did it in 2007-08. It is also likely that JB Bickerstaff will be named the coach of one of the All-Star teams.
