The Detroit Pistons have a desperate need at the point guard position, and a familiar face might be had at a bargain price to fill that spot.
The Detroit Pistons have a well-documented point guard problem. Behind starter Reggie Jackson is the disappointing duo of Steve Blake and Spencer Dinwiddie, neither of which should be backing up the point guard position for a playoff team.
There exist multiple solutions for this problem. The Pistons could pick a rookie in the upcoming draft, and there are a few possibilities that may still be in play for them when it’s time for them to use the 18th pick.
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There are also a number of buy-low free agents available at the position, some of which may have upside. Perhaps the most intuitive option of the bunch for the Pistons happens to be a very familiar face.
Pistons’ fan favorite and Twitter phenom Brandon Jennings might just be such a low-cost high-upside option. The former Piston was traded to the Orlando Magic along with forward Ersan Ilyasova in exchange for Tobias Harris in February just prior to the NBA trade deadline.
Jennings experienced a career renaissance with the Pistons in the 2014-15 season after the waiving of forward Josh Smith. The Pistons started that season 5-23, but things changed when the roster was altered with Smith’s release. After that ignominious start, the Pistons went 12-4 over the next 16 games and Jennings posted career numbers in virtually every category in that stretch, averaging 19.8 points and seven assists per game with shooting splits of .439/.394/.823.
Things took a horrifying turn for Jennings in a game against the Milwaukee Bucks on January 24th when he went down with a ruptured Achilles tendon, an injury that would hold him out of action for almost 11 months until his return on December 29th.
His road back may not yet be complete and he may never return to being the player it looked like he was blossoming into under the tutelage of head coach Stan Van Gundy, but for the price that the market will likely bear for Brandon Jennings, he might be worth a shot for the Pistons.
Most likely Jennings and whatever teams compete for his services will agree to a short-term deal, one that will let him rehabilitate his value and put him in position for a bigger long-term contract next season.
The actual number that will be offered to Jennings is hard to predict with the soon-to-explode salary cap this summer, but it wouldn’t be unreasonable with his injury issues to suspect that he’ll demand something in the $7-to-10 million range, and a one-year deal wouldn’t be unreasonable all things considered.
Last season in 48 games split almost evenly between the Pistons and Magic, Jennings averaged just 6.9 points and 3.5 assists per game on disappointing shooting splits of .368/.329/.731. It’s very possible this drop in performance is partially a result of being unsure on his legs still, a lack of confidence simply from not trusting his explosiveness.
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It’s well known that it’s hard to play your way back into game shape, and he may have suffered to some degree from that as well. Regardless, with a training camp under his belt and more time to heal, it seems like Brandon Jennings and his knowledge of Van Gundy’s system and chemistry with Andre Drummond may make him an asset with considerable value to the Pistons.