It was a season that didn’t answer many questions for Michael Gbinije. He bounced back and forth between the Detroit Pistons and the Grand Rapids Drive most of 2016-17.
Michael Gbinije entered the league as an oversized point guard capable of guarding the one, two and three spots, but we didn’t get much of an idea of what he can bring the Detroit Pistons this season.
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He stands at 6’7, giving him a physical advantage on the defensive end, and he showed signs in college that he might be an above-average three-point shooter, but there wasn’t much time for him to show either at the NBA level. Gbinije played just 32 minutes in nine games of mostly mop-up duty, but he appeared in 16 games for the Grand Rapids Drive of the NBA D-League.
Gbinije scored 12 points per game, adding 4.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.9 steals with the Drive, mostly playing on the wing. He got no shortage of playing time, averaging 35 minutes per game.
He struggled with injuries through much of the season, missing out on the opportunity to get some late-season playing time when Stan Van Gundy expanded rotations, which may be costly in the end for him. Gbinije will turn 25 on June 5th, so he’s definitely not as young as you would hope out of a player going into his second NBA season.
There remains optimism he can provide some shooting at the NBA level. He shot a solid 38.8 percent from long range at Duke and Syracuse in his four-year collegiate career, but the best predictive metric of future three-point shooting prowess is free throw success. Gbinije hit just 63.9 percent of his free throws in college and 71.9 percent in Grand Rapids.
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Gbinije has a three-year deal with the Pistons. The third year, 2018-19, is unguaranteed, and next season’s $905,240 salary is guaranteed for just $500,000. The coming summer could be pivotal for Gbinije’s future in the NBA.
Grade: Incomplete