Detroit Pistons: Andre Drummond is not untouchable

Detroit Pistons center Andre Drummond is one of the most valuable young stars in the NBA, but that does not make him an untouchable asset for the struggling franchise.

No team or player is immune from trade rumors during the NBA offseason. For the cash-strapped Detroit Pistons, most of the trade talk surrounding their roster focuses on role players that some fans and media consider overpaid (shout out to Jon Leuer), whose contracts could be unloaded for more financial flexibility.

But what about the Pistons’ second-highest paid and arguably best overall player?

Andre Drummond is a two-time All-Star at 24 years old. The 6’11” center has led the NBA in rebounding twice, including last season when he pulled down 16.0 boards per game to go with 15.0 points, 1.6 blocks and 1.5 steals.

Power forward Blake Griffin, a five-time All-Star, is undoubtedly Detroit’s most popular player with the mainstream audience.

Drummond, however, is viewed by many Pistons fans as the face of the franchise. They’ve watched him grow from the 19-year-old rookie reserve to an All-NBA performer making over $25 million a year, and his throwback style of play at least somewhat aligns with the physicality of the Pistons’ glory days of the 1980s and 2000s.

So would the Pistons ever trade Drummond?

It’s certainly been talked about over the past year, covering the gamut from reports that the team was testing the market on Drummond, to the usual debates and rumors among fans and media who cover the team.

It should not be a surprise that a significant portion of the Pistons’ fanbase is opposed to the idea of trading Drummond.

What I have found surprising is how many Pistons fans use the word “untouchable” to describe him. That is to say they don’t believe the Pistons should trade Drummond for anyone or anything; they view Drummond as off limits to the rest of the league.

Here are some actual responses from a recent post in a Pistons fan group on Facebook asking where people stand on possibly trading Drummond:

"He’s untouchable right now! Remember guys, he’s a young 24 year old ALL STAR! NO REASON AT ALL TO TRADE HIM, SMH"

"Untouchable he’s too good"

"Untouchable at this time. Get rid of him and you will be rebuilding for the next 4 years and still complaining."

"What kind of question is this ? A #True #Pistons fan would say #Untouchable !!!"

As much as I like Drummond’s game and his work ethic, and respect his commitment to Detroit, the reality is that he’s not untouchable. The Pistons don’t need to actively attempt to move him, but they should at least be willing to listen if a good offer comes along.

In today’s NBA, I don’t think you can say any traditional center is untouchable. Drummond is a younger version of Dwight Howard with a similar “old-school” big man’s skill-set, and Howard has been traded three times in the last four years.

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Howard isn’t a dinosaur either, at just 31 years old, and he’s much less productive than Drummond. Howard averaged 16.6 points and 12.5 rebounds per game last season, after which the Charlotte Hornets traded him to the Brooklyn Nets, who promptly bought him out, allowing Howard to sign with the Washington Wizards.

If Drummond were to develop shooting range like Karl-Anthony Towns or learn to handle the ball like DeMarcus Cousins (he’s working on it), this might be a different conversation. But as of July 2018, Drummond doesn’t yet fit the profile of the evolved 2018 NBA center.

There’s nothing wrong with Drummond’s bread and butter of boards, blocks and inside buckets. But not every coach or front office executive values those qualities as much today as in the past.

After missing the playoffs last season for the eighth time in nine years, the Pistons are in a period of re-tooling, if not outright rebuilding. Which means everyone on the roster could be available.

Stan Van Gundy was fired in May after serving four years as head coach and president of basketball operations, ushering in new leadership headed by senior adviser Ed Stefanski and coach Dwane Casey.

Considering it’s still early in the process for them, we don’t know exactly which direction Stefanski and Casey are headed, how they envision the Pistons’ future, nor do we know where Drummond fits into that picture.

When Casey talks about the team publicly, he doesn’t necessarily shower Drummond with praise. Casey has made it clear Drummond is an important part of the team’s foundation for now, forming a Big 3 with Griffin and point guard Reggie Jackson. But while Casey has gone into specific detail about how he wants to use Griffin, he hasn’t been as descriptive when it comes to Drummond’s role.

For what it’s worth, Casey always seems to mention Griffin first when talking about the team.

“I would put Blake Griffin as a star in this league and Andre Drummond made the All-Star team,” Casey said on ESPN’s First Take shortly after being hired.

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“[Griffin’s] ability, his IQ are off the charts. I’ll let you know when I coach him down the road. You got Blake Griffin and Andre Drummond and Reggie Jackson, so you’ve got some good pieces there in Detroit.”

While Casey has worked with great power forwards like Kevin Garnett, Dirk Nowitzki and Shawn Kemp during his coaching career, he doesn’t have as impressive a track record of working with traditional centers. One of the biggest critiques of Casey during his most recent gig with the Toronto Raptors was that he didn’t use his big men effectively.

The Pistons may very well have big plans for Drummond, and Casey may very well help him improve. But would the franchise be more open to the idea of moving Drummond now than prior to the Griffin acquisition, if Drummond is no longer the No. 1 building block? Would the Pistons be open to trading Drummond for a player or players that better fit Casey’s typically guard-oriented system?

Drummond is a rising young star with potential to be truly great. But some of the greatest players in the history of the NBA have been traded. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain and Shaquille O’Neal are arguably the three best centers the game has ever seen, and all three of them were traded at some point in their respective Hall of Fame careers.

While their fans may have felt those legends were untouchable, their franchises did not see things the same way.

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As good as Drummond is, and as great as he could be, there is a very short list of truly untouchable players in the league. He is not on it.