Is Detroit Pistons’ Luke Kennard the next Manu Ginobili?

4. Use body to draw contact

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Ginobili was a master of getting himself in the lane, then using his body to fend off the opponent and draw contact. He would twist and contort, flail and flop, but always keep his shoulders square to the hoop and his body between his opponent and the ball. It was infuriating to watch at times, but an effective way to get free points at the line.

While Kennard shot 84 percent from the free throw line last season, it was on only one attempt per game. That number needs to go way up.

Ideally Kennard will use more dribble penetration to get himself in a position to draw fouls. Like Ginobili, he needs to jab step and pump fake to keep opponents off balance, then lean in to draw fouls. This would also force defenders to play off him a little more, opening up his jumper and making the pump fake more effective.

While I don’t expect Luke Kennard to become an All -Star overnight, he must make a big jump if the Pistons are going to contend in the Eastern Conference this year and moving forward. He needs to get a couple hundred hours of footage of Manu Ginobili to learn some of his tricks, to be more creative on and off the ball.

This is the year Kennard must be a consistent offensive threat or he’ll be just another lefty who is starting to lose his hair.