Cade Cunningham of the Detroit Pistons plans on making his return from a collapsed lung in the team’s Wednesday night game against the Milwaukee Bucks.
Cunningham, a former MVP and first-team All-NBA candidate, has been sidelined with the lung injury since mid-March, but expects to return for the Pistons with just three games left in the regular season.
If he does play in Detroit’s final three matchups, Cunningham would only hit 64 total games played on the year. He would miss out on all NBA end-of-season awards; however, just like Luka Doncic of the Los Angeles Lakers, there is a way for Pistons’ star to still qualify for the MVP race and an All-NBA team.
Cade Cunningham Injury Update And End-Of-Season Awards News
Cunningham was originally listed as questionable for Detroit’s game against Milwaukee, but according to Vincent Goodwill of ESPN, he plans to make his return after missing 11 games with the collapsed lung.
“Cade Cunningham is expected to make his return this evening for the Detroit Pistons after missing time with an injured lung, sources tell ESPN,” he wrote on X.
The Pistons star has played just 61 games this season, and even if he sees action in the final three games of the regular season, he would still just barely miss out on end-of-season awards, as before going down with the injury, he was a top candidate in the MVP race.
However, as Goodwill reported, just like Doncic, Cunningham could file for an appeal, using the “extraordinary circumstances challenge” to allow him to potentially end up qualifying for end-of-season awards like the MVP or an All-NBA team.
“If Cunningham plays in the last three regular season games, he would fall one short of the 65-game minimum for post-season awards honors. However, there is language in the collective bargaining agreement, called the “extraordinary circumstances challenge” that would allow Cunningham’s situation to be reviewed by an independent arbitrator,” Goodwill wrote. “The independent arbitrator would be jointly selected by the NBA and the NBPA and the language is broad, so Cunningham could have a chance to qualify.”
While Doncic missed two games for the birth of his child in December, it is uncertain what grounds Cunningham would have for being ruled eligible, but it’s still a possibility the best season of his NBA career won’t end without any awards.
In those 61 games so far, Cunningham is averaging 24.5 points, 9.9 assists, 5.6 rebounds and 1.5 steals on 46.1% shooting.
Pistons Injury Report Vs Bucks And Playoff Seeding
GettyCade Cunningham, Isaiah Stewart and Jalen Duren of the Detroit Pistons.
Though still officially listed on the Pistons’ injury report as questionable, Cunningham plans on playing against the Bucks on Wednesday.
While his status was upgraded, the same was true for Isaiah Stewart, who is now questionable after missing a few weeks with a calf strain. Stewart, one of the top enforcers in the NBA, has been a key piece for Detroit over the past few years, and his availability for the postseason would be big for the team.
Kevin Huerter is also on the injury report, currently questionable with an illness.
As for the Pistons as a whole, they are one of two teams in the NBA that has clinched their exact seeding in the postseason. Detroit will be the top seed in the East for the 2026 Playoffs, the first time they accomplished that feat in 19 years.
The Pistons are 57-22, and look to finally be getting back their franchise star at a key point in the season.
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