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Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (2) is guarded by New York Knicks guard Mikal Bridges (25) during the second half at Madison Square Garden. Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Pistons' latest win shows they have turned the tables on Knicks

By Sean Keane | Last updated Feb 20, 2026 5:43 PM ET

The Detroit Pistons lost a hard-fought first-round series to the New York Knicks last season. The Knicks better hope they don't get a rematch this year.

Playing without All-Star Jalen Duren, the Pistons defeated the Knicks at Madison Square Garden, 126-111. The 15-point win was the smallest margin of victory for the Pistons, who have swept the season series and won by an average of 28 points.

The Knicks have no answer for Cade Cunningham

One big difference from last year's Pistons team is that Cade Cunningham has taken his game up a notch. He's delivering more assists (including 13 on Thursday night), while turning the ball over less and getting to the foul line more. He's an especially bad matchup for the Knicks, who have Jalen Brunson at point guard, giving up four inches and 30 pounds to the 6-foot-6, 220-pound Cunningham.

Cunningham scored 42 points Thursday, going 17-of-34 from the field and 5-of-11 from three-point range. The 24-year-old guard is finding the range from deep, already equaling January's three-point total (17) in February, despite a one-week All-Star break. If Cunningham is hitting from outside as well, the Pistons offense becomes very hard to stop.

The Knicks tried several defenders on Cunningham, including Brunson, Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby, Josh Hart and Jeremy Sochan, with Cunningham also scoring on Karl-Anthony Towns after a switch. Cunningham scored on all of them.

CADE CUNNINGHAM WENT OFF AT MSG

42 PTS
8 REB
13 AST
2 BLK
5 3PM

4 straight wins for the @DetroitPistons! pic.twitter.com/kBpLahGMOq
— NBA (@NBA) February 20, 2026

Knicks couldn't exploit the Pistons' suspensions

Detroit beat the Knicks by 31 points on Jan. 5 and by 38 points on Feb. 6. The Knicks should have had a better chance at home Thursday, with the Pistons' top two centers, Duren and Isaiah Stewart, both serving suspensions for fighting.

That wasn't the case. Third-string center Paul Reed scored 18 points, scoring nine of them in the final quarter while blocking two shots. The Pistons out-rebounded the Knicks 44-38. Besides Brunson (33 points) and Towns (21 points, 7-of-14), the other Knicks couldn't get it going at all.

In their first-round series last year, the Knicks' biggest advantages came in three-point shooting (36.5 percent to 32.4 percent) and in turnovers (78 to 99). This season, Cunningham is taking care of the ball better and finding his outside shot, while Detroit gives up the third-fewest three-pointers in the NBA. The Pistons defense was forcing the Knicks to settle for mid-range shots and held them to 23.5 percent shooting from deep.

Does this mean the Knicks are doomed in a potential playoff series? Not necessarily. The Knicks had beaten the Pistons 16 straight times from 2020 to 2024 before the Pistons won the last three meetings last season.

The difference is that last year's Pistons wins were all close. This year, they've all been blowouts.

A playoff rematch with the Pistons looks like bad news for the Knicks. Their only comfort is that they don't have to face Detroit in the regular season again.

Sean Keane

Sean Keane is a sportswriter and a comedian based in Oakland, California, with experience covering the NBA, MLB, NFL and Ice Cube’s three-on-three basketball league, The Big 3. He’s written for Comedy Central’s “Another Period,” ESPN the Magazine, and Audible. com

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