The Detroit Pistons were one of their biggest surprises of last season as they reached the playoffs after a disastrous 2023-24 campaign.
The Detroit Pistons, led by Kade Cunningham, showed grit and resilience to join the playoffs as the top six seed.
They faced the New York Knicks in the first round, where they lost, but the Pistons showed the world what they could do in the next few years.
One of the players that mattered to them in their great season was Tim Hardaway Jr., who moved to the free agency Denver Nuggets.
However, he gave praise to one of the team’s star players, especially for his maturity.
Cunningham ran a breakout campaign last year as he averaged 26.1 PPG, 9.1 APG and 6.1 RPG, creating an All-Star and All-NBA team.
He led the way from before, and his performance helped him gain praise from analysts and current players, including Draymond Green.
Hardaway Jr. had an incredible season with Cunningham, and in his recent podcast appearance, he gave young star flowers for his performance.
He states:
“He does an incredible job of playing at pace. He really has no weaknesses. A 3rd level scorer will dunk to you if he can play both ends of the floor, which is somewhat unusual in the league.
Hardaway Jr. pointed out Cunningham’s ability to protect the best players in the opposition team all night, and how he challenges him to do the same from his coach.
“You have star players who play defense, but it’s like a very rare star player taking on the challenge of defending the best players from other teams all night,” he added.
Isaiah Stewart is the player who divides the NBA community.
His teammates love him for his contributions, but the opposition parties don’t enjoy the constant chaos of battles Stewart brings to the game.
He has been involved in multiple brawls throughout his career, including the infamous incident against LeBron James in 2021.
However, Hardaway Jr. has revealed that despite all the toughness on the court, Stewart is a lovely person outside the game.
“Isaiah Stewart is probably one of the best teammates I’ve ever had.
“He has a heart of gold and won’t hurt the fly, but when he steps between the lines, I don’t know what’s going to happen, what’s going to happen, but he’s going to be something you really can’t teach,” he said.
The former Pistons player then continued to talk about how Stewart’s mentality helped the entire team.
Hardaway Jr. added: