How the Pistons’ stunning dominance against the best proves they can reach the NBA Finals

Not so long ago, Detroit Pistons they were looked down upon by the rest of the NBA. Cade Cunningham he saw his team win just 54 combined games over his first three seasons in the league, and the organization was nowhere near a threat in the East.

Even other teams mocked the Pistons, with Kyle Kuzma famously declaring that no one wanted one “be that team” after the Pistons lost their 28th straight game during the 2023-24 season, tied for the longest losing streak in NBA history. That was rock bottom for this organization, but times have changed significantly.

Now in his fifth season, Cunningham has lifted the Pistons to new heightsand this team is currently on pace to not only surpass that mark of 54 wins in the young star’s first three years in the NBA, but also to win at least 60 games for just the third time in franchise history.

The Pistons made it to the Eastern Conference Finals both times winning at least 60 games in a season, the last time being 20 years ago in 2006. Although Detroit fell just short of making the NBA Finals that season, they still won the 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 the top spot in the Eastern Conference standings and have earned the right to call themselves the team to beat on their way to the NBA Finals when the playoffs begin.

While there is still a lot of basketball to be played and many factors could change not only the standings, but also each team’s chances to win a championship, there is one constant with this Pistons team all season that just keeps growing and getting stronger.

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

The Pistons dominate elite teams

There’s always more than meets the eye when it comes to a team’s record. Oftentimes, fans will only look at wins and losses to determine how good certain organizations are during the year, and while that obviously can carry some weight, diving deeper into what each win or each loss means and who gives a clear picture of which teams are and are not title contenders.

Well, the Pistons are clearly a title threat this season, and it’s not just because they’ve won more than 75 percent of their games this season and sit atop the East. It’s not because of their recent wins over the New York Knicks or San Antonio Spurs either.

When you actually dive into the numbers and break down each of the Pistons’ wins this season, it’s clear to see that they’ve gone head-to-head with the best teams in the NBA and found success against each of them.

The Pistons have gone 19-7 against teams with a winning record this season, the best mark 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 beaten seven of the other top 10 teams in the NBA so far on the year. The only teams in the top 10 the Pistons have yet to beat are the Spurs and Minnesota Timberwolves, who Detroit has yet to face.

As for Spurs, Victor Wembanyama and his team recently achieved a hard-fought 114-103 victory in Detroitproving that they are just like the Pistons and could potentially see them in June with everything on the line. Before they even think about it, these two teams will meet again in San Antonio on March 5th in a highly anticipated showdown.

As for the Pistons’ record, winning 73 percent of their games against teams with a winning record speaks volumes. After all, it’s not like they’re just beating the worst teams in the league.

This young team has been challenged and tested, yet has overcome almost every roadblock during the 2025-26 season. The Pistons are a resilient bunch who understand what it takes to overcome adversity, and most importantly, embrace every trial and tribulation that comes their way.

Aside from losing back-to-back games just twice all year, the Pistons always look forward to opening games, as they are currently on the schedule. After games against the Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder, the Pistons now face two games against Cleveland, a tough road game against Orlando, and then the final game of the regular season in San Antonio.

While their first game against the Spurs may not have gone the way Cunningham and the Pistons had hoped, this team is ready to accept adversity and overcome it.

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

“It’s good, it’s healthy for us.”

Being a championship contending team doesn’t just mean having one of the best records in your conference or the league as a whole. 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 all the wins against the best teams in the league and continued success coming back from a few losses, the Pistons have something unique about them 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 2026-27, as they face them twice a year. The LA Clippers have swept Detroit both home and away this year, holding the Pistons under 100 points in both outings.

It’s worth noting that the Pistons were without Cunningham, Jaylen Duren, Isaiah Stewart and nearly all of their veteran contributors in the second meeting between these teams on Jan. 10, a game Detroit lost 98-92.

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

Regardless of what’s on their schedule, the Pistons play every game like it’s Game 1 of a playoff series, so this chip on their shoulder will only lead to success.

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

Cade Cunningham’s MVP season

A team’s record is important. Their success against some of the other great teams in the league is important. But at the end of the day, every championship organization always has one player they can point to guy.

For the Pistons, that is guy is Cade Cunningham, and he’s taken a huge step in his career to become one of the best guards in basketball. To be honest, this alone doesn’t give enough credit to Cunningham, as he has become one of the best players in the entire NBA, which is why right at the top of the MVP rankings currently with Nikola Jokić, Shaj Giljus-Alexander and others.

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

Believe it or not, the Pistons technically own the best record in the league at 75.4 percent, and Cunningham’s MVP resume will only grow if this holds true and Detroit stays atop the standings.

As for his production, Cunningham’s numbers and his impact on the win speak for themselves.

Cunningham has made it four straight double-doubles since his 42-point, 13-assist night in the Pistons’ 126-111 loss against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. After this particular performance, Bickerstaff made it clear that it was his star deserves more respect than anyone in the MVP race.

“I don’t think you pick an MVP based on just one game or one statement. He’s been like this all season long,” Bickerstaff said. “He dominated on both ends of the floor and impacted the win in a big way.”

“Credit to him, credit to his work, credit to his conditioning, his will to want to win, his ability to be a great teammate and lead. That’s what he’s been all season.”

The Pistons beat the best of the best, and the scary thing for every other team in the league is that Detroit is better now than it was in the first game of the season.

By the time the playoffs begin, the Pistons will be ready for the challenges ahead, and if any team in the East has the best chance to win 12 playoff games to advance to the NBA Finals, it’s this Pistons team.