Cade Cunningham joins Pistons on bench for 1st time since injury
· Yahoo Sports
Cade Cunningham made his first public appearance since suffering a collapsed lung, sitting on the bench in street clothes during the Detroit Pistons' home game on Tuesday, March 31, for a 127-116 win over the Toronto Raptors.
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The All-Star guard hadn't been with the team during a game since he went down with a left lung pneumothorax on the road against the Washington Wizards on March 17.
He was spotted briefly at the team's Midtown practice facility March 25 during their morning shootaround, working with trainers in the weight room.
Cade’s back on the bench tonight for the first time since the injury pic.twitter.com/Tl0y3MyYj2
— Omari Sankofa II (@omarisankofa) April 1, 2026
Cade’s at the practice facility post-shootaround. In the back working with trainers pic.twitter.com/qw0wYi7Ytx
— Omari Sankofa II (@omarisankofa) March 25, 2026
The team announced March 19 that Cunningham will be reevaluted in two weeks, which falls on Thursday, presumably before they host the Minnesota Timberwolves. With six regular-season games remaining for the Pistons (55-21), he is five games short of achieving end-of-season award eligibility; this season he is averaging 24.5 points, 9.9 assists and 5.6 rebounds per game.
"He's been around, he's been vocal and his presence has always been there since he went down," temmate Jalen Duren said Tuesday. "I know the fans probably haven't seen him at a game, but he hasn't went anywhere. He's still been with us, he's still been communicating every game, every practice. We've still been able to see him at the facility. It was just another day for us."
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Cade Cunningham joins Detroit Pistons on bench against Toronto Raptors