Cade Cunningham Removed from Pistons Injury Report, Could Make NBA Debut vs. Magic

Cade Cunningham appears to be on the verge of making his NBA debut. 

Per James Edwards III of The Athletic, Cunningham isn't listed on the Detroit Pistons' injury report ahead of Saturday's game against the Orlando Magic. 

Cunningham has so far missed the entire preseason and first four games of the regular season due to an ankle injury. He originally suffered the injury during practice on Oct. 1 when head coach Dwane Casey told reporters he turned it. 

Casey added at that time Cunningham's injury was "very mild."

Three days later, Casey announced there was no timetable for Cunningham's return. 

The Pistons selected Cunningham with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft. Expectations are incredibly high for the 20-year-old. 

Cunningham averaged 20.1 points per game and shot 40.0 percent from three-point range in 27 games as a freshman at Oklahoma State. He was named Big 12 Player of the Year and was a consensus All-America first-team selection. 

The Pistons (0-4) are the NBA's only winless team. Their offense ranks last in the league in scoring average (94.0 points per game) and offensive rating (93.6), per Basketball-Reference.com. 

Detroit's net rating of minus-11.0 ranks 28th in the NBA, ahead of only the Oklahoma City Thunder's (-12.6) and Orlando Magic's (-14.3).