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Pistons star Cade Cunningham has scarred Knicks fans this season with his two monstrous performances at the Garden — and the world has taken notice.The current 3-seeded Knicks are winless this season against the Eastern Conference’s top dogs — the Cavaliers and Celtics — but Heat legend Udonis Haslem isn’t so sure that the East’s best should be the Knicks’ biggest worries right now. “I’m not gonna even talk about second round, we’re gonna talk about first round,” Haslem said Tuesday on ESPN’s NBA Today show.“I’m looking at Detroit and I’m saying this could be a first-round exit for New York.”The Pistons enter Wednesday’s play as the No.
6 seed in the East, meaning if they and the Knicks stay put, the two would match up in the playoffs.The Knicks are fairly locked in to the No.3 seed, though Detroit is just a half-game behind Milwaukee for the five spot.“I like those thundercats out of Detroit.
I’m looking at that matchup and [the Pistons] are sharpening their swords,” Haslem said.“They’re ready for this matchup — they’re excited about this matchup.”Haslem also noted how Jalen Brunson’s ankle injury could still be lingering come playoff time.In three games against Detroit this season, the Knicks lone victory was back on Nov.
1.Detroit then marched into Madison Square Garden and toppled New York in each of the latest two matchups.Cunningham starred both times, notching a 29-point, 15 assist, 10-rebound triple-double in December and a 36-point performance in January.Fellow former NBA players Chandler Parsons and Louis Williams echoed similar sentiments as Haslem on FanDuel’s “Run It Back.”“People were saying the New York Knicks, on paper, [were] the best roster preseason,” Parsons said.
“But they’re gonna have a tough time getting out of the first round, let alone compete for a championship.”“[The Pistons] would be a tough matchup for the New York Knicks,” Williams said.“I still would have...