The Detroit Pistons’ franchise participant ought to have his future with the staff secured by early July.
The Pistons intend to signal Cade Cunningham to a rookie max extension of 5 years value $226 million (25% of the 2025-26 projected wage cap), a league supply advised the Free Press on Sunday night time. The contract might attain round $270 million, or 30% of the 2025-26 cap as soon as it is set subsequent summer season, if Cunningham meets supermax standards by making an All-NBA staff subsequent season.
The supply was granted anonymity as a result of a deal can’t be accomplished formally till 12:01 p.m. Saturday.
Cunningham, who turns 23 in September, is coming off one of the best season of his three-year profession, and is now signed for six extra years via the 2029-30 season.
His beginning wage at 25% of the cap can be about $39 million and attain roughly $51 million within the remaining season.
He’ll be beneath the tutelage of recent head coach J.B. Bickerstaff, who agreed to change into the staff’s third coach in as many seasons earlier Sunday.
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Cunningham averaged 22.7 factors, 7.5 assists and 4.3 rebounds per recreation on 44.9% total taking pictures and 35.5% from 3 in 2023-24. It was a bounce-back season after the 6-foot-6 guard play in solely 12 video games throughout his second season with a shin harm, resulting in season-ending surgical procedure.
The 2024-25 season would be the final on his rookie contract, earlier than his extension kicks in subsequent summer season, that means the Pistons sacrifice cap area and suppleness for the safety of locking in Cunningham’s future now forward of restricted free company.
New Pistons president Trajan Langdon has expressed his intention to construct round Cunningham and discover items that may lighten his workload.
“As for Cade, he and I’ve had some actually good conversations up to now,” Langdon stated throughout his introductory information convention June 21. “Excessive-character human being, mature past his years and an enormous time basketball participant at a younger age, averaging 23 and seven assists final yr. We’re going to place a gaggle round him that may bolster his development, however not make it as exhausting for him to do the issues he had to do that final yr, but additionally assist different gamers get higher.
“We wish to produce other gamers assist him so he can assist the opposite gamers as nicely, as a result of he’s an unselfish participant who I do suppose has an opportunity to actually be impactful at a excessive stage and be one of the best participant.”
Cunningham was one of many lone shiny spots throughout a dreadful 14-68 season in 2023-24 that exposed deep flaws within the Pistons’ team-building technique and training. Regardless of that, Cunningham on the finish of the season expressed pleasure to have a completely wholesome offseason forward of him to work on his top-two talent priorities: ball-handling, and conditioning.
“Clearly not the yr that we hoped for coming in, however we realized so much for positive,” he stated in April. “Plenty of classes got here out of it. For me, I am simply grateful to have been in a position to make it via one other season, to be wholesome, to seek out who I’m once more on the court docket after lacking most of my second yr. These are the positives that I’m taking away from a troublesome state of affairs like this. I’m actually trying ahead to what’s to come back.”
Cunningham joins Isaiah Stewart because the lone Pistons locked as much as long-term offers outdoors of rookies. Stewart enters the primary yr of a four-year, $60 pact signed final summer season beneath the Troy Weaver-led entrance workplace.
The Athletic was first to report the approaching settlement.
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Contact Omari Sankofa II at osankofa@freepress.com. Comply with him @omarisankofa.