Pistons star Cade Cunningham seems unlikely to play in NBA Summer League action

Cade Cunningham didn't win the NBA's Rookie of the Year award last season, but the Detroit Pistons are sure glad they were able to select him with the No. 1 overall pick of the 2021 NBA Draft nonetheless.

Cunningham had a slow start due to injury and he was never really that flashy, but he finished his rookie campaign averaging 17.4 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 5.6 assists on a Detroit team otherwise light on talent. He drew praise and respect from seemingly every other superstar he matched up with, and he enters his second season in Detroit as a player who appears to be on the cusp of superstardom.

With a core that now features the No. 5 overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, Jaden Ivey, the Pistons have to feel great about the team that they're building. That's not even mentioning the 13th overall pick Jalen Duren, who found his way to Detroit via trade, or the sharpshooting and always explosive Saddiq Bey, who boasted a 51-point game near the end of his sophomore campaign.

With so much young talent, it would make sense for the Pistons to get the young players as much work as possible this summer. That's why it wasn't surprising to see that Cunningham was on Detroit's Summer League roster. He joins Ivey, Bey, third-year guard (and former No. 7 overall pick) Killian Hayes, and budding center Isaiah Stewart.

While it would be exciting to see what this young group could do against summer league competition, especially with Cunningham at the helm, there was a sneaking suspicion that Cunningham was only on the roster so that he could legally practice with the team in Las Vegas. 

Despite his inclusion on the roster, it seemed as if the chances of seeing the No. 1 overall pick in summer action were slim, and those odds were all but crushed when Cunningham's trainer and cousin took to Twitter to provide an update on Detroit's "chosen one".