In the 75-year history of the NBA, just nine rookies have averaged at least 17 points, five rebounds and five assists. Eight of them won Rookie of the Year. The only exception was Magic Johnson, who lost out on the award to Larry Bird. Considering the company, maybe Cade Cunningham wouldn't mind being the next exception.
Except winning Rookie of the Year was one of Cunningham's goals this season. And he feels he deserves it. If Luka Doncic reached 17/5/5 in 2018-19 and Oscar Roberston did so in 1960-61 and both of them won Rookie of the Year, why shouldn't Cunningham (17.2/5.7/5.6) win it in 2021-21?
Johnson was bested in 1979-80 by a legitimate MVP candidate. Cunningham, in theory, would be bested by one of the lowest-scoring Rookie of the Year winners this century, either Evan Mobley or Scottie Barnes. History says the award belongs to Cade, and Cade tends to agree.
In a recent interview with Sports Illustrated, Cunningham said the idea that he isn't Rookie of the Year is a "misinterpretation."
“The NBA has a lot of fans, and there’s a ton of opinions out there," he said. "And so I kind of loosely know what’s being said about me, but more than anything I pay attention to my game and how I’m playing, how other people are playing, and I just use my own basketball knowledge to interpret what’s going on. I don’t really look into the opinions too much.
“But … I feel like I’m the Rookie of the Year. I think that’s a misinterpretation that I’m not."
The case against Cunningham is that high usage has led to high production, which is true to an extent. But his efficiency rating (16.8) isn't far off from that of Rookie of the Year winner Derrick Rose (17.1) in 2008-09, and his usage is by necessity. It's even a feather in his cap. Whereas Mobley has two All-Star teammates in Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen and Barnes plays with an All-Star point guard in Fred Van Fleet, Cunningham's on a team full of first- and second-year players that's frequently been missing its only proven scorer in Jerami Grant.
“This rookie class is tremendous,” Pistons GM Troy Weaver told SI. “But none of them are shouldering the load like Cade. So that alone, to me, kinda puts him a cut above everyone else.”
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The other knock against Cunningham is the Pistons' lack of success. Mobley and Barnes deserve credit for helping their teams back to relevance; both the Cavs and the Raptors will be in the postseason after missing it a year ago. But again, they've hardly done it alone. And since when has team success been measured in the race for Rookie of the Year? Only three of the last 15 winners have come from teams that made the playoffs.
Whether Cunningham wins the award is ultimately irrelevant. He'd like to win it because A) who wouldn't? and B) it would validate his selection as the first overall pick. But the Pistons didn't draft Cunningham to win individual awards, nor is that why Cunningham entered the NBA. They drafted him to help them win championships, which is where his focus lies looking ahead to next season: "First, I want to be a playoff team, for sure,” he told SI.
Cunningham has proven that he can be a star in the NBA. The Rookie of the Year result won't change that. He is doing things that have only been done by Jordan and LeBron. He is drawing comparisons to the greats, including the three-time MVP who bested Magic as a rookie.
“Larry Bird was incredible with his mind. He was just able to play ahead of everybody because of his mentality, and Cade has some of that,” Weaver said, echoing his comments from the night of draft. “I think in time Cade’s mind will allow him to always be a couple steps ahead. … If he ever reaches Larry Bird’s status, it’s over.”
For now, it's only just begun.