The Detroit Pistons had All-Star starter Cade Cunningham ready when they hosted the Washington Wizards on Thursday, Feb. 5, at Little Caesars Arena.
Cunningham was listed as questionable due to right wrist injury management, according to the NBA’s official Pistons injury report Thursday evening, but he started against Washington. He missed two games with a right wrist contusion in January, and the Pistons could have opted for caution with Thursday’s game the first of a back-to-back. They will stay home on Friday to host the New York Knicks.
Kevin Huerter will make his Pistons debut tonight against the Wizards (13-36), two days after being acquired in the Jaden Ivey trade with the Chicago Bulls.
Tobias Harris (left knee soreness) was questionable and later downgraded to out. Dario Saric (trade pending) was out.
Daniss Jenkins was also out, as he has only one game remaining that he can be active for on his two-way contract. The Pistons could be saving that appearance for Friday’s against the second-place Knicks, before having to convert his deal to a standard NBA contract and landing him on the 15-man roster.
On the Wizards’ side, Trae Young (right knee MCL contusion, quad strain), rookie Tre Johnson (left ankle sprain), Cam Whitmore (right shoulder deep vein thrombosis), Khris Middleton, Malaki Branham, AJ Johnson and Marvin Bagley III (not with team) are all out.
Middleton, Bagley, Branham and Johnson were traded to the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday in a deal that brought back Anthony Davis, who is expected to be out at least three more weeks with a hand injury.
This was the Pistons’ second game since trading Ivey to the Bulls, receiving Huerter and Saric in return.
The Pistons improved to 37-12 after defeating the Denver Nuggets at home on Tuesday. The Pistons are five games up in the Eastern Conference on the 33-18 Knicks and Boston Celtics, and 7½ games up in the Central Division on the Cleveland Cavaliers (31-21).
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Contact Omari Sankofa II at osankofa@freepress.com. Follow him on Bluesky and/or X @omarisankofa.
Next up: Wizards
Matchup: Pistons (37-12) vs. Washington (13-36).
Tipoff: 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 5; Little Caesars Arena.
TV/radio: FanDuel Sports Network Detroit; WXYT-FM (97.1).
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Cade Cunningham plays in Pistons-Wizards, Kevin Huerter to play
Reporting by Omari Sankofa II, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
