In the wake of Detroit Pistons star Cade Cunningham’s recent lung injury, he is now in jeopardy not qualifying for the NBA’s 65-game rule in order to be eligible for postseason awards honors. As a result, the National Basketball Players Association, or NBPA, came out with a prepared statement in support of Cade Cunningham and calling for the NBA to get rid of the 65-game rule for postseason honors, as per Sam Amick of The Athletic.
“Cade Cunningham’s potential ineligibility for postseason awards after a career-defining season is a clear indictment of the 65-game rule and yet another example of why it must be abolished or reformed to create an exception for significant injuries,” the NBPA wrote. “Since its implementation, far too many deserving players have been unfairly disqualified from end-of-season honors by the arbitrary and overly rigid quota.”
Cade Cunningham has been a potential MVP candidate, and an almost certainty for an All-NBA team. But with him having played in only 61 games thus far, and the Pistons having only 11 games remaining in the regular season, it appears to be an uphill battle as far as qualifying for the NBA’s 65-game rule.
Cunningham suffered a collapsed lung back on March 19 during the Pistons’ win against the Washington Wizards. He was expected to be re-evaluated in two weeks from the injury, which would put him at about a week and half before the end of the season, and six games left.
The Pistons have been the top team in the Eastern Conference this season, largely due to Cunningham’s MVP level play. He’s appeared in 61 games at a little over 34 minutes per game. He’s averaging a 24.5 points, 5.6 rebounds, 9.9 assists and 1.5 steals with splits of 46.1 percent shooting from the field, 34.6 percent shooting from the 3-point line and 81.4 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
