Reggie Jackson Dealing With A New Year’s Slump
The turn of the calendar to the new year has not treated Reggie Jackson well. He has really struggled during the month of January, and it may cost the Detroit Pistons.
Detroit Pistons‘ point guard Reggie Jackson has been the key to success. There is a stark contrast between Jackson’s stats in wins and his stats in losses. With Jackson’s struggles in the month of January, it has led to the Pistons going 6-6 in the month.
In wins, Jackson averages 22.8 points, 4.1 rebounds and 7.1 assists per game. He has an offensive rating of 124 and a plus/minus of plus-16.1. Additionally, he has a shooting slash line of .502/.466/.823.
Conversely, Jackson averages 15.0 points, 3.2 rebounds and 6.0 assists per game in losses. His offensive rating dips to 93 and has a plus/minus of minus-11.3. His shooting slash line is drastically worse, shooting .357/.242/.863.
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It’s clear that Jackson has provided great offensive production when the Pistons win games. But in losses, it’s his defense that is better. It’s a combination of both bad offense and bad defense. His offensive rating falls by 31 points between a win and a loss, but his defensive rating improves from 103 to 111 from wins to losses.
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Jackson has had his worst statistical month this season, and it’s not even close. He’s averaging 16.6 points per game, which has dropped his season average to 19.2 points per game. Prior to his cold spell, Jackson was looking to become the first Piston to average 20 points per game since Richard Hamilton did it during the 2005-06 season.
Jackson’s also had a reduction in rebounds per game. Through Jan. 26 he is averaging 2.3 rebounds per game. That’s caused his season average to drop to 3.7 rebounds per game, down from around 4 per game.
His usage rate has fallen to 26.3 percent, compared to a 29.6 usage rate in December. It wouldn’t be significant if it weren’t for his drop in production. In fact, his true shooting percentage has fallen to 50.6 percent, which is the worse than November’s 51.6 shooting percentage.
Though there are a couple of positives to Jackson’s game. He is having a season-best 6.9 assists per game this month, which has allowed his season average to increase to 6.6 per game. He’s also improved defensively. His 111 defensive rating is his best per month yet. It’s also part of a steady increase the entire season, suggesting his defense is improving.
It must be noted that there is a parallel with losing and Jackson’s increased defensive rating. His defensive rating increases when the Pistons lose. The same goes for Jackson’s decreased offensive rating.
Following a 115-99 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans, head coach Stan Van Gundy said that the Pistons “look committed to being mediocre,” according to MLive.com. After the loss, backup point guard Brandon Jennings claimed that the team has no leader, according to MLive.com‘s David Mayo.
“We need a leader in this locker room,” Jennings said. “That’s the first thing, we need a leader. We don’t have a leader. That’s just being honest. There’s no leader in this locker room. I think that would help. We do a lot of talking, but not a lot of doing.”
Jackson, 25, answered the call on Monday night in a 95-92 win over the Utah Jazz. He had a game-high 29 points and was plus-eight, his best plus/minus in seven games. Jackson’s game score of 23.8 was his best since a Dec. 18 meeting with the Chicago Bulls.
Jackson’s struggles in January have been impactful on the Pistons, but fortunately playing .500 this month has allowed them to keep pace in the Eastern Conference. They are eight games behind the East-leading Cleveland Cavaliers, who they will close a two-game home stand with on Friday.
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The Pistons have three games remaining in January, giving the team an opportunity to close the month out strong. However, it won’t be easy. They host the Philadelphia 76ers, but then have to play the Cavaliers and the Toronto Raptors on a back-to-back. Jackson will need to play well for the Pistons to have a chance in either game.