Will Andre Drummond and the Detroit Pistons do enough?

The Detroit Pistons gave Andre Drummond his max deal, but only after using the cap space they saved while waiting to do so. Will what happens next be enough to justify it all?

The Detroit Pistons finally finalized a reported five-year deal worth around $130 million with Andre Drummond. His new max contract makes him the highest paid player in Pistons franchise history.

Everything went according to plan. Specifically, this was the result of a mutual agreement that Drummond and the team came to last year. They agreed to delay the signing to let the team utilize all of its available cap space.

Via Keith Langlois of NBA.com/pistons, Stan Van Gundy said:

"“It goes to Andre’s character, his true commitment to the Detroit Pistons beyond just getting the contract, and Tom’s [Gores] commitment and his relationship with Andre.”"

The understanding allowed the Pistons to use an extra $14 million this offseason — the difference between the 6-foot-11 center’s cap hold of $8 million and the price tag on the first year of a max deal had he signed last year, which would have been valued around $22 million.

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As a result, the Pistons now have Tobias Harris, Ish Smith, Jon Leuer, and Boban Marjanovic, and they were able to give second-round pick Michael Gbinije a three-year deal — a combination that would have been impossible had Drummond signed any time last year or earlier this offseason.

But Drummond’s deal has put the team well over the $94 million cap. It leaves them with little in the way of flexibility in the coming years, which begs the question: will Drummond and the Detroit Pistons do enough to make this all worthwhile?

There was never a doubt in the front office’s mind that Drummond was deserving of a max contract, even before his All-Star season last year where he scored 16.2 points per game and led the league in both rebounds and double doubles.

But another issue emerged that made this contract a more controversial proposition. Teams are increasingly deploying the “Hack-a” strategy to force guys like Drummond from the game. In fact, the “strategy” drove Andre to the bench in the fourth quarter of each of the four playoff games against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Drummond’s free throw woes are well documented. And while the NBA has changed the rule to not allow the “hack-a” nonsense in the last two minutes of each quarter, it’s an issue that is going to continue to plague the Pistons and alter their in-game strategy.

The new NBA intentional-foul rules aren't going to help Drummond a whole lot. Teams can still foul him on the pick-and-roll.
— Dave Hogg ✨ (@stareagle) July 13, 2016

Drummond, with a paltry 38 percent career mark from the free throw line (and just 35.5 percent last season), is well on his way to becoming the worst free throw shooter in league history. While he hinted that he found something to better the issue, I’ll believe it when I see it.

Still, he will be just 23-years-old as he enters his fifth NBA season next year. We can assume that he still has plenty of room to grow and will continue to use his otherworldly athleticism for a player his size to affect the game in a number of beneficial ways for Detroit. But will that be enough to justify his contract if he has to continue to ride the pine at the end of close games?

Last year was Drummond’s first taste of team success at the NBA level. His willingness to wait for a contract so that his team could improve indicates he’s hungry for even more. But will the additions the Pistons were able to make be enough to take this team to the next level? Only time will tell.

Just as it will tell if the aftereffects of his max deal will result in any harmful roster moves down the line, such as the team being unwilling to sign Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to a lucrative extension.

No doubt Drummond’s decision has allowed the Pistons to get more versatile and add more depth, but will it be enough to deem this all a success down the line? We shall see.

Next: Detroit Pistons bench profile

What do you guys think about what the team has done with the extra cap space created by the agreement? What team accomplishments do you need to see in order to consider this a success?