Detroit Pistons superstar Cade Cunningham exited Tuesday’s game against the Washington Wizards with back spasms, and was ruled out for the remainder of the game.
Cunningham suffered the injury early in the first quarter while defending Wizards guard Tre Johnson. The Washington rookie lost control of the ball as he tried to spin away from Cunningham, and when both players dove for the ball, Johnson landed on top of Cunningham, who came up grimacing:
He remained in the game for a few minutes, but checked out with 6:40 to go in the opening quarter and headed back to the Pistons locker room. Midway through the second quarter, the Pistons announced that the two-time All-Star’s night was over:
Cunningham finished with six points, two rebounds and a steal in just over five minutes of floor time.
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Cunningham, 24, is on pace for his second straight All-NBA selection, and possibly a spot on the MVP ballot, for his work in leading Detroit to the Eastern Conference’s best record. He’s averaging 24.9 points, 10.1 assists (second in the NBA behind Nikola Jokić) and 5.6 rebounds per game for the Pistons, who have already lost reserve center Isaiah Stewart for at least a week to a left calf strain, and who entered Tuesday’s action with a 3.5-game lead on the Boston Celtics for the No. 1 seed in the East.