Detroit Pistons: Snub of Andre Drummond spells trouble for NBA centers

Keeping Andre Drummond off the 2018 NBA All-Star team could pose problems for big men around the league.

The NBA recently announced the rosters for the 2018 NBA All-Star Game. Detroit Pistons center Andre Drummond is notably missing from the final 24 players.

The snub of one of the league’s premier big men may become a nightmare for teams around the NBA.

Michael Jordan built his legend on slights, real and imagined. Tom Brady has won five Super Bowl rings and hopes to win his sixth next weekend, largely fueled by the perceived snub of being drafted in the sixth round of the NFL Draft. Kobe Bryant used real and imagined slights to fuel his “Mamba Mentality,” a philosophy that propelled his career and led to a recent Oscar nomination for his short film entitled Mamba Mentality.

Drummond’s decision to excel instead of sulk is bad news for the NBA.

What’s more lethal than Mamba Mentality, Jordan, Russell Westbrook or a Brady- Belichick combo? A snubbed Bryant, Jordan, Westbrook or Brady. Rule No. 1 with guys like that is never give them bulletin board material.

Leaving Drummond out of the All-Star game just might be bulletin board material he can’t walk away from. If Andre Drummond decides to use the All-Star snub to fuel his game, the big men of the league are in trouble.

In the Pistons’ first outing since the head-scratching omission, Drummond’s stat line made a convincing argument for why he should be included on the All-Star roster.

Wednesday night, he scored 30 points, had 24 rebounds, six blocks, four assists and three steals in an overtime loss to the Utah Jazz.

Injured Detroit Pistons’ guard Reggie Jackson also took to Twitter to voice his disbelief that his teammate didn’t receive a spot in the NBA’s annual popularity contest.

Drummond seemed relentless in Detroit’s loss to the Utah Jazz.

After the All-Star snub, Drummond suggested he might need to do backflips to get noticed in the NBA.

The social media department of the Detroit Pistons reminded fans of Drummond’s tweet with a tweet of their own during the game.

Drummond was already playing at an All-Star caliber level before the announcement of the All-Star roster. Shaquile O’Neal, Chris Webber, Isiah Thomas and Baron Davis discussed Al Horford‘s inclusion over Andre Drummond’s during one of their Player’s Only segments.

Once Drummond’s career ends, the second half of the 2017-18 season might need a footnote of its very own. Will the omission become the moment that propels his career? Drummond went from being a liability for the Detroit Pistons at the charity stripe to being a threat to any team that dares to put him on the line — a transformation largely due to Drummond’s mindset.

If Drummond has it in his mind he needs to elevate his game even more to garner respect, the NBA could have front row seats to a defining moment in his career.

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Drummond’s recent activity feels like a turning point. The big men and coaches of the NBA have a new nightmare to worry about. His name is Andre Drummond and the NBA doesn’t have many answers to keep the nightmare at bay. His skills, along with the fuel from the All-Star snub, set the stage for sleepless nights for NBA big men.