Detroit Pistons player preview: Expectations for Henry Ellenson

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DETROIT, MI – APRIL 9: Henry Ellenson #8 of the Detroit Pistons handles the ball against the Toronto Raptors on April 9, 2018 at Little Caesars Arena, Michigan. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Chris Schwegler/NBAE via Getty Images) /

Possible impact

So what kind of impact could Henry Ellenson provide if he were given regular and consistent playing time?

Well, let us take a look at his career-long streak of eight games. Take this with a huge grain of salt, as it’s such a small sample size. But it does provide us with an idea of what could happen if Ellenson was given time to find a clear role on the court.

In that span his stats were as follows: 18.5 minutes, 9.7 points, 4.1 rebounds, 1.0 assists, and 0.2 steals per game.

As for his field-goal percentages: 42.4 percent from the floor, 40 percent from deep, and 94.7 percent at the free-throw line.

Those numbers are very promising. A lot of Pistons faithful initially believed Ellenson to be that stretch-four that could give Andre Drummond more room to operate in the paint. These stats keep that hope alive. Pull up the game from Apr. 8, 2018 and you’ll see what kind of shooter he can be.

Personally, I don’t think Ellenson is a good enough shooter from deep to maintain 40 percent throughout an entire season. This is due to one very bad habit that he has.

The next time you see him spot up, watch what he does with the ball once he catches it. He brings it down to his waist with both hands before bringing it back up to shoot. This cocking motion is easy to defend, as it takes Ellenson longer to get his shot off.

While I do cite this Memphis game as an example of Ellenson’s ability to hit 3-pointers, it also shows that he needed the extra time and space Memphis’ terrible defensive gave him that night to be a very good outside shooter.

He’s going to struggle against tighter defenses. But that’s not to say he’ll be a bad shooter.

I’ve seen him hit that three with a hand in his face quite a bit. Look at the G League game from last November against the Raptors 905 as an example. He hit five 3-pointers in that game against a lock-down defense.

So a league-average clip of 35-36 percent is a much more reasonable expectation. He has great shot prep with the toe tap, and he has gotten better at putting more arc on his shot. But do I think Ellenson’s role is going to be limited to just being a stretch four? Well in a word, no.

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