NBA’s Number One Draft Pick Cade Cunningham Is Vegan

NBA's number one draft pick, Cade Cunningham, is joining the ranks of plant-based NBA players as a vegan athlete. The 19-year-old Oklahoma State basketball player has been vegan since high school and credits the decision to experiment with how his body would react to plant-based food. Despite a brief break in 2019 where he ate McDonald's during a trip with Team USA, Cunningham quickly returned to veganism and has stuck with it ever since.

Cunningham has also become an athlete ambassador for Eat Just, the brand behind the popular mung-bean-based vegan egg substitute, JUST Egg. As he heads to play for the Detroit Pistons in the next NBA season, he will also be the face of a vegan breakfast sandwich at a local cafe in Detroit. Cunningham is not alone in his plant-based lifestyle within the NBA, joining players like Kyrie Irving and DeAndre Jordan who have also adopted vegan diets, as well as NBA Hall of Famer Scottie Pippen who recently launched his own line of plant-based popcorn.