Cade Cunningham Should Be Rookie Of The Year

The NBA season is winding down, which means awards season is upon us — that should be very relevant for one Piston in particular.

Cade Cunningham is a future star, there's no doubt about that. In fact, he's starting to look like a star already and part of solidifying that would be him winning Rookie Of The Year.

There are plenty of people who believe he should be the league's top rookie. Of course, guys like Evan Mobley and Scottie Barnes are having solid seasons for much better teams, but Cunningham is being asked to do so much more for a rebuilding team. And the stats don't lie.

Cunningham is leading all rookies in scoring and is in the top three in assists per game, three-point field goals made per game, minutes per game and triple-doubles. He's stuffing the stat sheet on a nightly basis and is making his teammates better already. 

He's already in elite company when it comes to scoring points, grabbing rebounds and dishing out assists. The only players in NBA history to start out with a pace like him are LeBron James, Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Luka Doncic, Alvan Adams and Oscar Robertson. That's the elite of the elite when it comes to NBA legends who can do it all. 

That's Cade Cunningham.

Cunningham plays for a small-market team that hasn't won many games this year but he's the best rookie in the NBA and I don't think it's all that close. His fingerprints are all over every game in a way that makes him the best, most important rookie to his team. He might not end up winning the award because the Pistons haven't been successful this season, but he's well on his way to being the best player from his draft class regardless of titles.