How the Pistons’ amazing dominance proves they can reach the NBA Finals

Not long ago, the Detroit Pistons were looked down upon by the rest of the NBA. Cade Cunningham led his team to only 54 combined games in his first three seasons in the league, and the organization was not even close to being a threat in the East.

Even other teams were mocking the Pistons, with Kyle Kuzma famously saying that no one “wants to be that team” after the Pistons lost their 28th consecutive game during the 2023–24 season, which remains the longest losing streak in NBA history. That was the lowest level for this organization, but times have changed a lot.

Now in his fifth season, Cunningham has led the Pistons to new heights, and the team is currently on pace to not only surpass the 54-win mark in the young star’s first three years in the NBA, but also win at least 60 games for only the third time in franchise history.

The Pistons made the Eastern Conference Finals both times they won at least 60 games in a season, the most recent being 20 years ago in 2006. Although Detroit fell just short of reaching the NBA Finals that season, they did win a championship during the 1988–89 season, a season in which they went 63–19 overall.

This season, the Pistons are following in the footsteps of their past, as they currently hold a strong hold on the top spot in the Eastern Conference standings and have earned the right to call themselves the team to beat en route to the NBA Finals when the playoffs begin.

Although there is still a lot of basketball left to be played and many factors can change not only the standings, but every team’s chances of capturing a championship, one thing has remained consistent throughout the season with this Pistons team only growing and getting stronger.

When it comes to playing the best of the best, the Pistons have established themselves as the best in the NBA.

Pistons are dominating specific teams

There is always more than meets the eye when it comes to a team’s record. Often, fans will only look at wins and losses to determine how good certain organizations are over the course of the year, and while this can obviously hold some significance, what each win or each loss means and to whom it paints a clear picture of which teams are championship contenders and which are not.

Well, the Pistons are clearly title contenders this season, and it’s not just because they have won more than 75 percent of their games this season and remain on top of the East standings. It’s not even because of their recent wins over the New York Knicks or San Antonio Spurs.

When you really dive into the numbers and break down each of the Pistons’ wins this season, it becomes clear that they have battled against the best teams in the NBA and found success against each of them.

The Pistons have gone 19–7 against teams with winning records this season, the best record against teams over .500 in the NBA. For context, the Oklahoma City Thunder are 19-11 overall, and the Spurs are 21-11 against teams above .500 this year.

In fact, Detroit has wins over seven of the other top 10 NBA teams so far this year. The only teams in the top 10 that the Pistons have not yet defeated are the Spurs and the Minnesota Timberwolves, who Detroit has yet to face.

In terms of the Spurs, Victor Wembanyama and his crew recently pulled off a hard-fought 114-103 win in Detroit, proving they are just as good as the Pistons and potentially seeing them on the road in June with everything on the line. Before we even think about it, these two teams will meet again in a highly anticipated clash on March 5 in San Antonio.

As far as the Pistons’ record is concerned, winning 73 percent of their games against teams with winning records speaks volumes. After all, it’s not like they’re beating the worst teams in the league.

This young team has been challenged and tested, yet they have overcome almost every obstacle thrown at them during the 2025-26 season. The Pistons are a resilient group that understands what it takes to overcome adversity, and most importantly, they embrace each trial and tribulation that comes their way.

Aside from only losing back-to-back games twice this entire year, the Pistons always look forward to marquee matchups like the one on their schedule right now. After games against the Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder, the Pistons now look forward to two games against Cleveland, a tough road game against Orlando and then the final regular season matchup in San Antonio.

Although their first game against the Spurs did not go as Cunningham and the Pistons expected, this team is willing to accept and overcome adversity.

“We’ve had a week full of smoke,” Cunningham said, via the Detroit Free Press, after Monday’s loss to the Spurs. “It’s great. We get to see where we are, see where the league is, learn a lot in these three games, five games, even the last few games we’ve played have all been good challenges for us. There’s been a lot to learn from all these games. I think we’ll come out of all of this better and more prepared for the playoffs and everything.”

“It’s good, it’s healthy for us.”

Being a championship-contending team doesn’t necessarily mean you have one of the best records in your conference or league at large. A team is defined by the quality of its wins, and the Pistons have clearly proven that they have what it takes to beat the best of the best.

Fool them once, but not twice

Aside from consistent success against the top teams in the league with all of their wins and some of their losses, the Pistons have something unique this season.

Only one team in the league has beaten the Pistons twice this season, and it’s a team they won’t see again until the 2026-27 season, as they face them twice a year. The LA Clippers defeated Detroit both home and away this year, holding the Pistons to under 100 points in both contests.

It is worth noting that the Pistons were without Cunningham, Jalen Duren, Isaiah Stewart and almost all of their veteran contributors in the second meeting between these teams on January 10, a game Detroit lost 98–92.

No other team in the league can say that they haven’t lost at least two games to multiple opponents this year, which is another reason why the Pistons are so unique. What all this means is that JB Bickerstaff has a young, hungry team that has grown together over the last few years, and they are finally putting the pieces of the puzzle together on their way to success.

Regardless of what happens on their schedule, the Pistons play every game like it is Game 1 of a playoff series, which is why this chip on their shoulders will only lead to success in the future.

“Our guys respect everybody and want everybody to do their best,” Bickerstaff said recently. “No matter who the opponent is, our people always look forward to those challenges.”

Cade Cunningham’s MVP-like season

A team’s record matters. Their success against some of the other great teams in the league matters. But at the end of the day, every Championship organization always has a player they can refer to Man.

For piston, that Boy Cade Cunningham is here, and he has taken a huge step forward in his career to become one of the best guards in basketball. Honestly, just saying that doesn’t give Cunningham enough credit, as he has become one of the best players in the entire NBA, which is why he currently sits atop the MVP rankings alongside Nikola Jokic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and others.

At this rate, it’s not hard to believe that Cunningham can surpass these other stars and win the 2025-26 NBA MVP award.

Believe it or not, the Pistons technically own the best record in the league with a 75.4 winning percentage, and Cunningham’s MVP resume will only grow if that comes true and Detroit remains on top of the standings.

As far as his production goes, Cunningham’s numbers and his impact on wins speak for themselves.

Cunningham recorded four consecutive double-doubles during his 42-point, 13-assist night as the Pistons defeated the New York Knicks 126-111 at Madison Square Garden. After this special performance, Bickerstaff made it clear that his star deserves the most respect in the MVP race.

Bickerstaff said, “I don’t think you pick an MVP based on just one game or one statement. He’s been that way for the entire season.” “He dominated at both ends of the field and influenced the win in a big way.

“Credit to him, credit to his work, credit to his conditioning, his will to win, his ability to be a great teammate and lead. He’s been like that all season long.”

The Pistons have beaten the best, and the scary thing for every other team in the league is that Detroit is better now than they were in the first game of the season.

By the time the playoffs begin, the Pistons will be ready for the challenges ahead of them, and if any team in the East has the best chance to win 12 playoff games to reach the NBA Finals, it is the Pistons.