How Andre Drummond’s 3-point shooting could help (or hurt) the Detroit Pistons

Andre Drummond has been putting in a ton of work this off-season shooting 3-pointers. But will it help or hurt the Detroit Pistons come game time?

Andre Drummond has not shied away from letting everyone know that he will be shooting 3-pointers to start the season.

He’s posted several workout and training videos of him shooting from distance at different spots on the floor. This has led fans to be optimistic, or anxious about how it may help or hurt the Detroit Pistons this season.

On media day, Drummond told reporters about his 3-point shot. According to the center,head coach Dwane Casey has given him the “green light” to shoot the three when he is wide open.

Drummond also says that he’s been shooting 1,000 3-pointers every day, while cashing in on 40 percent of them. In detail, he’s been shooting around 300 to 350 threes from each corner, and 200 from the top of the key.

Fast forward to Tuesday, and Drummond continued to display his progress.

Obviously, this video is just a small sample size. But he’s giving himself a chance to prove that an outside shot will be apart of his offensive game next season.

Now, lets see how it could help or hurt the Detroit Pistons.

How it could help the Pistons.

There are a couple of different ways that Andre Drummond’s 3-point shot could help the Pistons.

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to realize that in one possession, scoring three points is better than scoring two points. This is assuming he’ll able to knock down 3-pointers at the league average (or better).

Last season, the Houston Rockets proved why 3-point shooting is so important. They attempted a league-high 42.3 triples per game and posted the second-best scoring average (112.4) in the NBA.

The Pistons shot 28.9 threes per game, and finished with the ninth-lowest scoring average (103.8) in 2017-18.

Another way it could benefit the Pistons has to do with spacing. Having shooters spread evenly around the court can lead to defensive troubles for the opposing team.

At the league average, Drummond could draw his defender away from the basket, thus opening up the lane for players like Reggie Jackson and Blake Griffin to attack the rim at ease.

The Boston Celtics were a great example of this last season. Al Horford drew his defenders away from the paint, leaving more space in the lane for the guards to finish at the rim.

How it could hurt the Pistons.

As much as the 3-pointer could help the Pistons; it could hurt them just the same.

The first problem could be the percentages. Specifically, if Drummond is shooting below the league average.

It might lead to low-scoring games, and could also put the team towards the bottom of the league in 3-point shooting. Last season, Detroit shot 37.3 percent from beyond the arc – the fifth highest percentage in the NBA.

But the bigger issue could be rebounding. In the last five seasons, Drummond has led the league in total offensive rebounds. The Pistons score 3.7 points per game (PPG) on second-chance points when Drummond is off the court, and 9.5 PPG when he’s on the court.

If Drummond misses a 3-point shot, chances are there won’t anyone in the paint to contest for an offensive rebound. Again, this could lead to low-scoring games for Detroit.

Spacing could be a good thing if he’s making his threes. But it could also hurt the team if he’s not hitting those shots at the league average.

The opposing center will not step out and contest Drummond’s 3-pointers if he doesn’t reach that percentage. This could lead to the offense becoming stagnant, causing poor shots from his teammates.

The lane would be heavily guarded by the opposing big, while Drummond hovers around the 3-point line.

Is it worth the risk?

With all the positives and negatives that could come from Andre Drummond’s new offensive weapon, is it worth the risk for the Pistons to add this into the offensive playbook?

Detroit will probably give Drummond the opportunity to show whether or not he can become a legitimate, 3-point scoring threat during the season.

If not, the team may advise him to refrain from taking 3-pointers during a game, but to continue working on (and improving) his shot.