Cade Cunningham is back, and he’s not holding back. After missing 11 games with a collapsed lung, the Pistons‘ star point guard returned to action as Detroit dominated Milwaukee 137-111. After the blowout win, Cunningham opened up about the terrifying reality of what he went through during his recovery.
Speaking after the game, as reported by Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press, Cunningham admitted the injury hit differently from anything he’d experienced before.
“Yeah, it was different than the injury I’ve ever had as far as how it progressed initially from whenever I got hit,” he said, adding that he was genuinely frightened during the early stages.
He revealed he was “panicking a lot,” crediting the medical staff for keeping him grounded and calm through the uncertainty.
Cunningham also opened up about the mental grind of recovery. “Couldn’t get my heart rate up, which was boring,” he said. But he found a silver lining in watching his teammates. “My heart rate went up a few times watching the team, which was, you know, but it was fun. It was fun to be able to watch from a different perspective like that.”
He talked about how the forced absence actually deepened his appreciation for the group around him. “I think I learned a lot, and watching the team grow the way they did and handle business the way they did was a lot of fun,” he said.
Cunningham wrapped up on a deeply grateful note, saying: “I’m just thankful for all the support and prayers and everything else in my way. It makes a lot to have all that support and all that love sent to me. So I’m just happy and feel blessed to be back.”
In his return to the floor, Cunningham played a composed 26 minutes, finishing with 13 points on 6-of-11 shooting to go along with a game-high 10 assists.
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Pistons Star Cade Cunningham Reveals Brutal Truth About Injury appeared first on Heavy Sports.