After dropping two straight road games against the Milwaukee Bucks and Indiana Pacers, the Detroit Pistons have three notable statistics that fans should consider headed into a tough set of back-to-back games.
The Detroit Pistons have landed in Minneapolis and are currently preparing to take on the Timberwolves later tonight in the first of a tough set of back-to-back games, but “analytics Twitter” has also been hard at work.
As the Pistons put up warm-up shots, I scoured the web for the most outrageous and interesting statistics I could find about the second-place Detroit Pistons.
Without further ado…
Ish Smith – Noted Sniper
As a change-of-pace point guard on the bench unit, Ish Smith was never really known as an excellent shooter throughout his career. Smith’s job is to run the court in transition and find open shooters hanging out on the wings and at the break. During his time in Detroit, Smith is averaging 7.6 assists per 36 minutes.
However, Ish Smith has found the shooter’s touch this season. The noteworthy stat is the following:
Ish Smith ranks in the 95th percentile in points per possession for mid-range shooting.
Smith’s ability to hit mid-range shots at a high clip this season has opened the floor for shooters around him and for big men rolling to the rim.
Smith’s ability to hit the mid-range this season has also been key when the offense breaks down and the shot clock is about to expire.
For example, Smith takes his man off the dribble, creates space, and nails the shot against the Milwaukee Bucks.
Post-Timeout Struggles
On one of my pieces covering the adversity that the Pistons are facing, one commenter boldly proclaimed that Stan Van Gundy should be fired at the end of the season. While some fans would agree that his “GM” skills are a bit puzzling, offering large contracts to unusable pieces (Boban Marjanovic), fans were mostly aligned in the fact that his X’s and O’s were above average at a minimum.
However, the following stat might influence fans to question Van Gundy’s coaching as well:
In plays that directly follow a Pistons’ timeout, the Pistons rank 29th in the league in points per possession (0.799 PPP).
While this stat is likely to be heavily influenced by the relatively small sample size, it is a bit concerning to see that Stan Van Gundy has struggled to create plays that give his players open looks out of timeouts so far this season.
While this stat may not be reflected in the Pistons’ record yet, it may be a slight foreshadow into games where the last 2 minutes (and subsequently late game timeout plays) are critical.
Andre Drummond – Defensive Player of the Year?
Throughout his career, Andre Drummond has constantly been the subject of heavy criticism from Pistons’ fans regarding his ability to defend.
After undergoing offseason sinus surgery, Drummond has been noticeably better at defending the rim at times. However, I’m not sure fans ever expected those improvements would catapult Drummond into national conversation, but NBA Math would beg to differ:
According to NBA Math, Andre Drummond ranks as the best in the NBA in defensive points saved.
Heading into November 18, here's how all NBA players have fared in TPA throughout the 2017-18 season: pic.twitter.com/grD7fjFyWz
— NBA Math (@NBA_Math) November 18, 2017
Now I’ll be honest – I don’t think Drummond is Defensive Player of the Year material yet, but I do think his improvements on defense should be acknowledged.
He’s been an effective defender against big men in the pick-and-roll, been able to perform better against bigs that have the ability to stretch the floor, while also positioning himself perfectly for rebounds.
Next: Game Preview: Minnesota Timberwolves
As the season progresses, it will be imperative to keep an eye on the statistics mentioned as they could easily be a product of low sample size or they could be indicative of an actual trend. Nonetheless, the Pistons head to Minneapolis for a tough back-to-back matchup.