What effect does Reggie Jackson’s return have and what can we expect?

With Reggie Jackson now back from injury the Detroit Pistons look like a much better team and have been playing much better. But what can we actually expect from Reggie Jackson after such a significant injury? Let’s recap and take a look.

Cast your mind to that devastating night on Boxing Day at Little Caesars arena where Reggie Jackson landed awkwardly on his own after having played 21 minutes and sprained his ankle.

Later on we found out that this was a Grade 3 ankle sprain, which means that it affected all ligaments of the ankle and they are either completely torn or close to it. Alongside that there will also be the presence of severe instability of the ankle joint itself.

He was initially given a 6-8 week timetable to return, with all Detroit Pistons fans hoping for the former; however it was not to be as he eventually returned exactly 8 weeks later on the 20th March.

Prior to the injury of Reggie Jackson the Detroit Pistons went an absolutely respectable 19 wins and 14 losses. That percentage would’ve given them a 47 (47.2) win season, which would likely put them into the playoffs with a decent seeding (maybe 5th or 6th).

While Reggie Jackson was out the Detroit Pistons managed a meager 12 wins and a whopping 25 losses, which would’ve given them 27 (26.56) wins on the season.

While Reggie Jackson was out, the Detroit Pistons could only manage an offensive rating of 103.3 and a defensive rating of 106.2, giving them a net rating of -2.9 which put them 22nd in the league in net rating. Up until the injury the Detroit Pistons were managing an offensive rating of 104.7 and a defensive rating of 104.5, giving them a net rating of +0.3 which put them 15th in the league.

Since Reggie Jackson has been back the Detroit Pistons have been playing a much better brand of basketball according to the eye test, and looking a lot more competitive.

Reggie Jackson has played 5 games for the Detroit Pistons since he’s been back and in that time they have won four and lost one, their only loss coming against the best team in the NBA at the moment – the Houston Rockets.

In that span they also have an offensive rating of 107.4 and a defensive rating of 93.1 (Best in the league over the last 5 games), which would give them a net rating of +14.3, which puts them 2nd in the league over the last 5 games.

Over that span Reggie Jackson has been averaging 11.8 points, 2.6 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and only 1.4 turnovers in the 22.6 minutes per game. His minutes are increasing constantly after playing 15 in his return, and most recently playing 28 minutes against the Los Angeles Lakers, as well as another 28 minutes against Washington.

It’s pretty clear what effect Reggie Jackson has on the Detroit Pistons, and how vital he is to this team.

Having a look for other professional athletes that have been through the same injury brings is a short list. The only athletes I have been able to find so far are: Kiefer Ravena (Phillipines Basketball), Katherine Lee (Shoreham-Wading River Track), Andre Hollins (University of Minnesota Basketball), Percy Harvin (NFL), and Matthew Dellavedova (Milwaukee Bucks) – who is yet to return.

Kiefer Ravena – After returning from a grade 3 ankle injury, Kiefer Ravena was able to win back t -back MVP awards in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP), he was also in the UAAP Mythical team with back to back appearances. He was recently drafted 2nd overall in the Philippines Basketball Association and has been playing well, recently earning player of the week honours.

Percy Harvin – Percy Harvin was diagnosed with a grade 3 ankle injury and was traded to Seattle. Once there he signed a new contract and continued to have injury trouble, this time with his hip. He played against his former team and made 1 reception for 17 yards and a kick return for 58 yards. He played in the 2nd half of the Superbowl and returned the opening kickoff for an 87 yard touchdown. Percy Harvin was then traded to the New York Jets where he recorded 29 receptions from 52 targets for 350 yards with 1 touchdown, he also had 110 yards rushing on 22 attempts, and 20 kickoff returns for 495 yards.

Katherine Lee – Katherine Lee suffered a grade 3 ankle injury at the Millrose Games in 2017. This year in the lead up to the event she ran a 1000m race and broke the previous small school meet record by nearly 5 seconds, and her own personal record by 2 seconds. She has also run the fastest 800m in New York State when she placed third in the Marine Corp Holiday Classic.

Andre Hollins – Andre Hollins was diagnosed with a grade 3 ankle sprain in January of 2014. The season after he was able to maintain his scoring average of 13 points per game, as well as increase his rebound up to 4 per game and assists up to 2.7 per game. All his shot percentages improved except for his free throws which diminished slightly. He went undrafted in 2015 and is currently playing in Hungary. His team currently has 18 wins and 6 losses in the Hungarian league and are currently 2nd. He is currently averaging 13.4 points (2nd on the team), 3 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 0.8 steals in 27 minutes per game.

The reason that I wanted to take a quick look at other players through the same injury, is to see what the precedent is and what we can expect from Reggie Jackson since he’s come back. There have been a few athletes across a variety of sports that have been able to carve out a decent career after sustaining a grade 3 ankle sprain. So we can have hope that Reggie Jackson should be able to maintain some good form and if he can stay healthy, he can lead the Detroit Pistons effectively.

If we look at what the Detroit Pistons were able to do with Reggie Jackson, and carry that across a whole season, then we should be in for a good season next season.