The Detroit Pistons were eliminated in Game 7 at Little Caesars Arena, falling 125-94 to the Cleveland Cavaliers as a 31-point loss closed their season. The defeat, coming as the top-seeded team, marked the third-largest loss by a 60-win team in NBA postseason history, according to ESPN Research.
With 5:51 remaining and the Pistons trailing by 34 points, Cade Cunningham was called to the bench between free throws while fans were leaving the arena. Cunningham hugged coach J.B. Bickerstaff and teammates on the sideline before taking a seat after what the report calls a playoff career-low 13 points. He shot 5-for-16 from the field, went 0-for-7 from 3-point range and finished with five assists and three turnovers.
Bickerstaff declined to label the 2025-26 season a disappointment, saying, “It’s not a disappointment at all. And not ever will I be disappointed in these guys,” and adding that the loss is “a tough loss” but not one that will define the group, per the report.
Cunningham called the game “sucked” and said returning to Detroit made the defeat especially painful, recalling a similar home-court loss the previous year. He noted that his mind was now racing about the offseason and what he needs to do. The Pistons trailed by 17 points at halftime, which the report says was the second-largest halftime deficit by a No. 1 seed in a Game 7 since seeding began in 1983-84, according to ESPN Research.
Detroit had earlier responded to elimination threats this postseason by winning four straight games when facing elimination, including a seven-game series victory over the Orlando Magic in Round 1. In Game 7, the Pistons managed 34 points in the paint, tying their fewest in any game this season.
Guard Ausar Thompson scored five points and said he would not forget the series, calling the loss personal. Cunningham also highlighted positives from the season, saying the team established an identity and would take those elements into the offseason and come back next year to grow, per the report.
