Cade Cunningham's Restriction Explained After Pistons-Grizzlies

Cade Cunningham is dealing with a minutes restriction.

Mar 21, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (2) reacts to being knocked to the floor during the second half against the Dallas Mavericks at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Following a two-week absence, Cade Cunningham found himself upgraded to probable against the Memphis Grizzlies over the weekend. It seemed there was a good chance the one-time All-Star could get cleared to make his return for the first time since the Detroit Pistons’ March 21 loss against the Dallas Mavericks.

Lately, Cunningham’s been dealing with a calf contusion. He explained the full reason behind the recent stretch of absences on Saturday.

“I got hit in my left calf, and it made my right calf tighten up a lot,” Cunningham told reporters on Saturday. “It was just a lot going on. I got sick at the same time. Just trying to battle a lot of different things.”

After missing six games in a row, Cunningham returned and played fewer than his average amount of minutes. After checking in for under 28 minutes, Pistons head coach JB Bickerstaff confirmed there was a restriction in place for Cunningham.

JB Bickerstaff on Cade being on a minute restriction tonight

“Yeah that was the goal around that number obviously didn’t want to overexert him give him an opportunity to get his legs under him and try to catch him rhythm a little bit.”

Question asked by @omarisankofa pic.twitter.com/ZWc8qHincw

— Pistons Talk (@Pistons__Talk) April 6, 2025

“That was the goal, around that number,” Bickerstaff said after Cunningham’s 27-minute shift. “Obviously, didn’t want to overexert him, just give him an opportunity to get his legs under him and try to catch a rhythm. I thought he did a good job tonight.”

Cunningham struggled with his shot, going 9-24 from the field. Since he was shooting at a high volume, he still managed to score around his average for the season by dropping 25 points. The star guard was also one rebound shy of a double-double.

“This was a good game for me to try and shake off the rust,” Cunningham said after the game.

The Pistons will be back on the court on Monday to take on the Sacramento Kings. All signs point to Cunningham playing, as he’s been left off of the injury report. If all goes right, he could see a slight increase in minutes this time around.