Detroit Domination
The Pistons throttled New York once again... but that doesn’t mean it’s time to give up on the Knicks in ‘26.
Final Score: Knicks 111 - Pistons 126
Record: 35-21
There was plenty of attention paid and hype directed towards the Knicks’ first game out of the All-Star break—bountiful buzz about a potential playoff preview inside the world’s most famous arena.
With a week to prepare, the hope was that New York would deliver a message to Detroit after the club from Motown savagely embarrassed the ‘Bockers in the first two meetings between the two teams this season.
Instead, it was the Pistons who sent notice. And the missive was unmistakable: Detroit is the class of the conference.
They have the NBA’s best record. They have been the best team in the East all year. And last night, they had, by far, the best player on the court.
Cade Cunningham, in a legitimate MVP-caliber performance, authored one of the best all-around games on the Garden floor this season. He poured in a game-high 42 points and dished out a game-high 13 assists to go along with eight rebounds, five treys, two blocks, and one steal.
Cunningham became the first player in Pistons franchise history to tally 40+ points, 10+ assists, 5+ three-pointers and 5+ boards in a single game. In the process, he joined LeBron James and Allen Iverson as just the third visiting player ever with at least 40 points and 10 dimes at Madison Square Garden.
Unfortunately for New York, last night was not an anomaly. The Pistons’ All-World PG has been picking apart the Knicks defense all year, averaging 27.3 points, 11.0 helpers and 5.3 rebounds vs. New York in the Pistons’ three wins.
Remarkably, he is the first opponent to finish a season averaging more than 25 points, 10 assists, and 5 rebounds against the Knicks since... Oscar Robertson in 1966-67.
The Knicks tried an assortment of defenders, but none could slow down the engine that drives Detroit. New York’s vaunted WingStop Duo got chewed up.
OG Anunoby returned from a painful toe injury, but he was no match for Cunningham in this contest. It’s probably unfair to pin too much blame on a player suiting up for the first time in more than two weeks, but this was a rare game in which Anunoby badly hurt his team. Not only was he taken advantage of on the defensive end, but OG was just 3-of-13 from the floor, missing seven of his eight three-pointers.
In many ways, Anunoby is a barometer for the team’s success. He played poorly during New York’s 2-9 nosedive in January. Then, suddenly, was a dominant two-way force in their subsequent eight-game winning streak.
In wins this season, OG is averaging 17.5 points while shooting above 52% from the field and above 42% from downtown.
In losses, he is averaging 13.6 points while shooting below 39% from the floor and below 26% from deep.
OG’s Net Rating in Knicks wins is +18.9
OG’s Net Rating in Knicks losses is -10.4
Mikal Bridges (who has no rust/injury excuse) was invisible for most of Thursday’s defeat. He finished with eight points on nine FG attempts, three rebounds and zero assists. Bridges closed out the first half of the season on a strong note (averaging 19.3 points on 54% shooting and 3.8 FTA’s in NY’s final four games before the break), but was passive vs. Detroit and didn’t earn a single trip to the charity stripe.
We’ll get into the impact of “Brunson Ball” and the KAT conundrum below, but let me close the opening diatribe with some sunshine for dreary Knicks fans on this rainy Friday.
One year ago, on February 8, 2025, the Knicks got absolutely mollywhopped by the Celtics at MSG, 131-104. Two weeks later, New York got spanked by the C’s in Boston.
As a reminder, the Knicks were thoroughly dominated by the Celtics during the 2024-25 regular season, losing all four meetings. Boston bested NY by a combined 65 points in those four games, with the Celtics scoring a ridiculous 130.2 points per 100 possessions. New York was also 0-4 vs. Cleveland.
This was a major talking point last April, both nationally and locally: Because they were embarrassed during the regular season, the Knicks had no chance to compete with the East’s elite in the playoffs.
Yet, as we know, the Knicks first beat Detroit and then eliminated Boston, advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals.
This obviously doesn’t mean that New York is ECF-bound because Detroit demolished them in the regular season, but it also doesn’t mean it’s time to give up on the Knicks in ‘26.
