Andre Drummond and Reggie Jackson are starting to click
The Detroit Pistons’ offense was built to function around its two stars, Reggie Jackson and Andre Drummond. They’re back together after Jackson’s knee injury, and they’re starting to click.
The Detroit Pistons have been a team in transition since the beginning of the preseason following the injury to Reggie Jackson. The Pistons had to adjust to an offense run by Ish Smith, taking a couple of weeks to gel, and now they are adjusting back to Jackson being added back into the mix.
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Now that Jackson is back in the fold and on the floor, he’s being eased back into action. He was on a minutes limit in his first two games and played 26 minutes against the Charlotte Hornets on Wednesday, which is a season high so far.
The Pistons offense was built to function around Jackson and Andre Drummond, particularly through the pick and roll. While Ish Smith brought his own particular abilities to the floor, he isn’t an effective pick and roll quarterback, leaving Drummond’s strengths underutilized.
While Jackson’s minutes have been closely monitored, he’s been able to get back into a groove with Drummond quickly.
Reggie Jackson has played 67 minutes this season, 58 of which have been with Andre Drummond.
Over the course of those 58 minutes, they’ve played 112 possessions together. While Jackson and Drummond are on the floor together, the Pistons have outscored their opposition 102.7 to 90.2 points per 100 possessions, which is good for an impressive +12.5 net rating.
With the duo sharing the floor, Jackson has a usage rate of 30.6, while Drummond has a 24.6 usage rate. These rates are fairly in line with their respective 28.1 and 25.2 last season.
They’re also rebounding better with these two on the floor, posting a 52.4 percent rebounding rate, down a little bit from last season’s 54 percent rate.
While we’re working with a small sample, the fact that the numbers bear similarity across the board to last season are worth noting. Considering the fact that Jackson and Drummond were one of the most dominant duos in the league last season, a repeat of that performance will help the Pistons make a push for an upper-tier playoff spot.
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