Detroit Pistons rookie Cade Cunningham on Friday returned after a five-game absence and produced 12 points and five rebounds in a loss to the Charlotte Hornets.
Cunningham recently dealt with some soreness after suffering a right hip pointer on Feb. 1 in a loss to the New Orleans Pelicans. He was cleared to play on Friday but was placed on a minutes restriction. He finished by playing 22 minutes in the 141-119 loss.
“He came out, hadn’t played in a while,” Pistons coach Dwane Casey said. “(We) didn’t want to run him in the ground. He has gotta get his legs back under him and the medical people wanted us to watch his minutes.”
Casey said previously the injury was not considered to be serious but the team wanted to be cautious with Cunningham. He did not play on Thursday on the front-end of a back-to-back but was able to go on Friday as he works through some soreness with the injury.
“Certain movements cause some discomfort, more than anything and pain,” Cunningham said. “But I’m just trying to work through it, get it back right and get better.”
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Cunningham has missed 14 games this season following his recent absence. He missed five games at the beginning of the season because of an ankle injury, five from the hip pointer and four while in the health and safety protocol.
He has shown, when healthy, why the Pistons took him with the first pick. He was viewed as perhaps the most complete player entering the draft and has displayed that throughout much of his rookie campaign. He has the potential to become their No. 1 option as the future looks bright in Detroit.
This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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