In an early battle of this year's top picks, no.2 was better than no. 1. Jalen Green and the Houston Rockets defeated Cade Cunningham and the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday in the NBA Summer League at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas.
The game was certainly hyped even before tip-off, as it was the first chance to see the league's most touted rookies go at it. They play similar styles as well, making it more interesting for Cunningham and Green. But in the end, the Rockets pulled off the 111-91 win.
But after the game, Cunningham, the first overall pick, simply shrugged off the defeat, saying he's not too worried about it (via Pistons reporter Rod Beard).
“I know what the hype was around the game but we have bigger goals to try to reach and bigger fish to fry. This is a Summer League game, we've got to try to stay focused on how we can be the best that we can be for the regular season.”
Cunningham led the Pistons in scoring with 20 points but he didn't shoot efficiently, finishing with 8-of-20 field goals. He added four rebounds, two assists, and three steals. Green, on the other hand, led all scorers for both teams with 25 points, showing that the Pistons got it wrong by passing on him.
While yes, it's just the NBA Summer League, Cade Cunningham for sure will take the loss as fuel when he goes toe to toe with Jalen Green once again when the actual NBA begins. Clearly, this has the makings of a new and interesting rivalry.
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