Each off-season since bursting onto the NBA scene, Andre Drummond has improved his game dramatically. And this year could see the most dramatic changes to date.
Last season, Andre Drummond transformed himself from being just the guy who gets a lot of rebounds for the Detroit Pistons, to a much more well-rounded, complete and dynamic player.
The most obvious of these changes was his play-making, which improved out of sight.
In Drummond’s previous five seasons his career-high average for assists was just 1.1 per game, and in total, he’d recorded just 277 assists.
During the 2017-18 season, he dished out 237 assists, working out to be a 3 per game average.
Based purely on numbers it’s clear that he worked hard on being a better passer, but visually during games, it was just as obvious.
Drummond looked so much more comfortable with the ball in hand and when dribbling.
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More often than not when a center tries to put the ball on the floor it ends terribly, and when fans see this it makes the blood pressure start to skyrocket, but that’s no longer the case here.
The fear of Drummond causing a silly turnover just by having the ball in his hands for more than a couple of seconds was gone, replaced by the enjoyment of watching some pretty impressive passing displays.
It’s true, his turnover numbers did increase, it ended at a career-high 2.6 per game, but considering the previous two seasons it had hovered around 1.9 per game it really isn’t much of a change.
Having an extra player on the floor who can be trusted to handle and push the ball up the court is invaluable, especially when you have a player pulling in as many rebounds as Drummond.
In previous years you’d have Drummond cleaning the glass and then having to search for another player to palm the ball off to around 16 times a game.
However, with the massive strides he’s made in handling the ball he can now push it up the floor himself at times, giving the Pistons an added edge on offence.
When you consider that Blake Griffin is in Detroit too and possess the same sort of skills, albeit, at a much higher level than Drummond, opposing teams start getting into territory where it’s extremely hard to defend effectively if the Pistons decide to push the pace.
If you told fans three years, even the most biased Pistons fans, that Andre Drummond would develop into a good passer they most likely would have thought you were insane.
This is why it’s not completely crazy to think Drummond might actually possess some outside shooting this season.
During the offseason, we have been constantly told that he is working to expand his range, frequently shown videos of him working on his shot in the gym, and new head coach Dwane Casey is encouraging him to let it fly from the perimeter.
Naturally, everybody’s first response to this was to break out into laughter or be extremely considered about the direction his game is heading in.
However, Drummond developing a serviceable outside shot is feasible.
It’s clear, just based on his past history, that when he wants to develop or improve a skill he works ridiculously hard at making that happen.
Remember when the entire state of Michigan would let out a collective groan upon seeing Drummond walk to the line to shoot free throws?
Well, he worked on that constantly, and that hard work paid off this past season as he almost doubled his free throw percentage to shoot 60 per cent for the year, and even led the league in free throw shooting at one stage.
When you look at the work he put in on his free throw form, combined with the work he did to be a better handler and passer, it starts to seem more realistic that he could be splashing the ball from range at times.
Sure, there is almost no chance he starts shooting the ball like Kristaps Porzingis (39.5 per cent from three) or Karl-Anthony Towns (42% from three), if he could manage to make 30 per cent of his outside, the same rate that Draymond Green generally travels at, he’s going to be extremely dangerous.
Of course, shooting at 30 per cent doesn’t guarantee he’ll be a better player when there’s the very real danger that his impact could drop dramatically if he’s just sitting behind the three-point line all the time.
Whether Casey and Drummond can figure out how to keep Drummond being just as effective while also going to the perimeter will be a massive focal point for Drummond’s season.
If they can get the balance right and he can make his shots, then the world is his oyster.
If they don’t, the Pistons’ entire season could become a train wreck that will be hard to look away from.
Andre Drummond’s 2018-19 season has by far the highest ceiling of any player on the Detroit Pistons.
He has the potential to cement himself as one of the very best centers in the league and one of the most impactful players overall.
Unfortunately, there’s also the very real potential for it to go disastrously wrong.
If the three-point experiment goes horribly wrong it could very well derail everything, for both Drummond as an individual and the entire team.
Whether we see him truly breakout as a star or crash and burn, there’s no doubt Andre Drummond’s season will be an intriguing spectacle to follow along with.