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Detroit Pistons Midseason Review And Grades

By Aaron Ferguson

November 9, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Detroit Pistons center Andre Drummond (0) during the first quarter against the Golden State Warriors at Oracle Arena. The Warriors defeated the Pistons 109-95. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
November 9, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Detroit Pistons center Andre Drummond (0) during the first quarter against the Golden State Warriors at Oracle Arena. The Warriors defeated the Pistons 109-95. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /
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Dec 26, 2015; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; Detroit Pistons guard Brandon Jennings (7) before the game against the Boston Celtics at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports /

Point Guards

The return of Brandon Jennings has created a buzz for the Pistons. However, his play hasn’t exactly been great, and has hurt the team more than he’s helped. But that isn’t the reason for the poor point guard play as of late.

Reggie Jackson is the leader of the young Pistons team in wins this season. He averages 22.7 points, 7.1 assists and 4.1 rebounds per game in wins, compared to averaging 15.6 points, 5.9 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game in losses.

Coming off of his best month with the Pistons in December, Jackson is playing in his worst stretch of the season in January. He’s averaging 16.8 points, 7.1 assists and 2.4 rebounds per game in seven games.

He is still playing well this season with a 21.3 PER, though it’s down from 21.7 from our last review. He is up to 3.2 offensive win shares and a 4.7 Offensive Box Plus/Minus (OBPM). With a 29.3 usage rate, that’s very good offensively. Jackson, however needs to take the next step defensively since he struggles to defend opposing scorers.

Jennings has played in 10 games since recovering from an Achilles injury. He looks explosive as far as his athleticism goes, but it isn’t translating on the court. He’s only averaging 6.4 points and 3.3 assists. He’s shooting a career-worst 35.6 percent from the field and 26.7 percent from three-point range, which is also a career-worst.

Jennings’ 12.4 PER suggests that he has been playing below-average basketball. He’s always thrived on the offensive end and lacked on the defensive side. The difference this year is Jennings hasn’t exactly played well offensively, which is hurting the bench production more than it’s helping.

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Steve Blake has been relegated to the bench since Jennings’ return. He is only played in two of the team’s 10 games since Jennings returned to the lineup. It’s difficult to gauge his productivity in those two games, since he’s played a total of 10 minutes in those games.

Prior to Jennings’ return, Blake was playing well enough for the Pistons. He was valued more on the defensive end, where he has 0.5 defensive win shares. But his most valuable asset was his 28.6 assist percentage.

Spencer Dinwiddie, who has played nine games total for the Pistons, has been factored out of the rotation at this point in the season.

The Pistons have certainly seen a decline in point guard production. It can’t get much lower than where they are now, and if they do that raises a big problem. Expect Jennings to find his shot and begin to play better on the offensive end. He’s streaky and needs to find his groove offensively. Jackson should also improve with a lighter schedule ahead.

Previous Point Guard Grade: A

Point Guard Grade: B

Next: Shooting Guards

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