Detroit Pistons' Cade Cunningham would like to get a fair whistle. But is he already?
The Detroit Pistons’ ongoing frustration with foul calls — or rather, the lack of them — reached a boiling point this week.
Cade Cunningham aired his grievances after Saturday’s home loss to the Orlando Magic, in which he had zero free throw attempts for the second game in a row despite 41 combined field goal attempts.
“I take pride in being a good basketball player. I don’t take pride in the fact that I can’t get to the line,” he said after Saturday's game, during which he scored 26 points on 11-for-20 shooting. “I’m trying to get there. I’m watching the stuff. I’m trying to learn from it. It is what it is, man. I gotta stop bitching and crying to (the referees), I feel like that’s only making them not want to look out for me more. I don’t know what it is. Maybe I gotta be nicer, maybe I gotta kiss somebody’s ass, I don’t know what it is. I’m working on it and I’m trying to get it.”
Monty Williams went a step further on Monday, when a blatant missed loose-ball foul on Ausar Thompson allowed the New York Knicks to take the lead for good in the final seconds of the game. The Pistons lead the NBA in personal fouls committed per game, but Tuesday was the latest example of why the team feels as though the disparity is greater than it should be.
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"The absolute worst call of the season,” Williams said after. “No call. And enough's enough. We've done it the right way, we've called the league, we've sent in clips. We're sick of hearing the same stuff over and over again. We had a chance to win the game and a guy dove into Ausar's legs, and it was a no-call.”
The Pistons’ issues with perceived missed calls are among many frustrations in a bleak season. A silver lining does exist, though — Cunningham’s foul-drawing issues may not be quite as bad as the perception.
By any measurement, the third-year guard is having his best season when it comes to getting to the free-throw line. Per 100 possessions, his 6.1 free-throw attempts per game are a modest increase over his second (5.2) and first (3.9) seasons. His two free-throw-less games last week are outliers. He has eight total games this season without a free throw, and 12 with at least seven attempts.
His 32-point performance at Madison Square Garden on Monday, in which he made seven of his eight free throws, was a bounce-back game. In Tuesday's win over Bulls, Cunningham was 5 of 7 from the free-throw line.
Basketball-Reference.com lists his free-throw attempt rate (number of free throw attempts per field goal attempt) at .235, comparable with other starting guards and wings. Boston Celtics All-Star Jaylen Brown is at .242 this season. Cunningham has the exact same rate as Oklahoma City Thunder rising star Jalen Williams.
So it’s not that Cunningham can’t get to the line. According to Cleaning The Glass, he’s been fouled on 8.7% of his shot attempts this season — in the 64th percentile among wings (which the stats site characterizes him as). But he’s lagging significantly behind the NBA’s top foul merchants.
Cunningham is taking 4.3 free throws per game. Oklahoma City's MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is averaging nine. Fellow All-Star Luka Doncic is averaging 9.3.
But there are standout guards averaging fewer free throws than Cunningham, too. Indiana Pacers breakout star Tyrese Haliburton is averaging just 3.5.
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Free throws won’t make-or-break Cunningham’s success, but the NBA’s elite tend to get the benefit of the doubt more frequently. The Pistons point guard understands that being the best player on the NBA’s worst team will impact the respect he gets.
“I’m not proud of the way that this season has gone, team-wise,” he said. “I had higher hopes as far as winning games, all that stuff. I want to do all that. I don’t do the comparison thing as far as me to these other players. I know I’m on that level of being an All-Star, I know all that stuff is that. But I haven’t won enough games. So I respect that. I know that once I do that, then all the other stuff will come with it.”
Even without the abundance of free throws other lead ball-handlers are granted, he’s averaging 22.4 points while shooting 45.5% and 35.6% from 3. There’s growth ahead for him as far as learning how to draw contact and earn the respect of the whistle. But already, his numbers show that he’s figuring it out.
The Pistons would benefit from the growth that Cunningham has shown. Monday’s game-losing missed call against the Knicks inspired Williams to be more critical of the refs than he has all season. He’s also discussed Cunningham’s issues this season. For now, they don’t appear to be intertwined.
"You cannot miss that in an NBA game, period, and I'm tired of talking about it, I'm tired of our guys asking me 'what more can we do, coach?'” Williams said after Monday’s game, exasperated. “That situation is Exhibit A to what we've been dealing with all season long, and enough's enough."
Contact Omari Sankofa II at osankofa@freepress.com. Follow him @omarisankofa.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Pistons' Cade Cunningham getting more FTs than you'd think
