Andre Drummond Is Becoming A Superstar
Detroit Pistons’ center Andre Drummond is transitioning from a star to a superstar. Drummond is off to a great start with 136 points and 137 rebounds through his first seven games.
Drummond, 22, was named the NBA’s Eastern Conference Player of the Week for the second straight week. Drummond’s 19.4 points per game and 19.6 rebounds per game is a bizarre statistic, and is an attribute to his great success this season.
Drummond (93/95) joins the elite company of Moses Malone (127/91) as the first player to have 90 points and 90 rebounds through his first five games since the 1983-84 season, according to Basketball Insider’s Alex Kennedy. Drummond also joins Wilt Chamberlain and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with three 20-20 games in his first six games, according to Elias.
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.@AndreDrummondd has 93 pts/95 rebs in first 5 games. Last player with 90/90 in first 5 games was Moses Malone in 1983-84 (127 pts/91 rebs).
— Alex Kennedy (@AlexKennedyNBA) November 7, 2015
Last 3 players with 3 20-20 games in first 6 games of season
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) November 9, 2015
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, Andre Drummond
(via @eliassports)
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Part of Drummond’s success could be attributed to the Pistons playing guard-heavy teams to start the season. However, Drummond had a 20-20 game against a front court that features Pau Gasol, Nikola Mirotic and Joakim Noah. Drummond also grabbed 19 rebounds against Al Horford‘s Atlanta Hawks.
His biggest test is yet to come when the Pistons play teams with better frontcourt depth.
It’s a small sample size, but Drummond has the NBA’s attention with his fast start. Last season Drummond averaged 13.8 points per game and 13.5 rebounds per game. He shot 51.4 percent last season. He’s increased his shooting percentage to 53.3 percent through seven games this season. Drummond is taking about three more shots a game from last season.
He is more of a focal point in the offense, taking the second most shots per game (15.3), and is second only to point guard Reggie Jackson (18.7).
Drummond needs to improve his free-throw shooting. Late in close games opposing teams will foul Drummond, similarly to Dwight Howard, because he is a 40.7 percent free-throw shooter. He is second-worst in the NBA in free-throw percentage and is only ahead of DeAndre Jordan, who shoots 34.2 percent from the free-throw line.
Coach Stan Van Gundy will have to make a decision on whether it’s worth the missed free throws to leave Drummond on the court in late-game situations. Losing Drummond’s defensive and rebounding abilities allows teams to attack the basket.
The most comparable comparison to Drummond’s improvement is Cleveland Cavaliers’ power forward Kevin Love. While Love is a different player than Drummond, Love’s jump from his second season to his third is similar to what Drummond has shown from the 2014-15 season to this season.
In the two-season span, Love bumped his points per game up by six and rebounds by four. Drummond is currently increased his average by six points per game and six rebounds per game.
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 11/10/2015.
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 11/10/2015.
Drummond is making leaps in his game. He’s improved as a shooter and a rebounder this season. But his defense has also improved. Through his first seven games, his steals per game has gone up from 0.9 per game last season to 1.9 this season. He continues to be a rim protector averaging 1.9 blocks per game in 2015.
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Drummond is an exciting player to watch. At 22 years old, he still has an opportunity to improve as he gains more experience in his larger role. The Pistons have a great center to build around and it will be important to keep him as the face of the franchise.