Pistons news: Jaden Ivey’s shooting slump continues

When the Detroit Pistons drafted Jaden Ivey with the 5th pick, they knew there were parts of his game that needed to improve, namely his outside shooting.

The electric guard is one of the quickest players in the NBA, and when he is getting to the rim or running the floor in transition, it is a thing of beauty and why he is high in so many of the early rookie rankings.

Jaden Ivey even started the season shooting well from the outside, hitting 46 percent of his shots overall and 34 percent from the 3-point line, numbers that were probably beyond what most people expected in his rookie season.

It’s been a steady decline since, and Ivey has been particularly bad over his last eight games, hitting just 34 percent from the field overall and a miserable 23 percent from long range.

His minutes, points, rebounds and assists have all gone down as well, so it’s safe to say this is the rookie’s first real slump in the NBA. So how does he get out of it?

Detroit Pistons: Time to get Jaden Ivey going

The first noticeable thing about his stats over the last eight games is that Ivey is shooting more 3-point shots than he was early in the season, up to nearly five per game during his slump.

He’s especially shot too many early in the shot clock, which has been a problem, as he hasn’t hit a high percentage of them and it gives the Detroit Pistons little chance to get an offensive board.

The best way to end a shooting slump is to see the ball go in a few times, so Ivey needs to dial back the long balls and focus on dribble penetration, getting out in transition and getting to the line.

This can all start with defense, as jumping into the passing lanes for steals is one way to get out on the fast break. Ivey was also averaging more rebounds early in the season, which is another way for him to get some early offense at the rim, as he he can take the defensive board and start a fast break himself.

Ivey’s assists have also been down during this slump, which is another thing he can get going. Making the extra pass and dumping it off to teammates when he gets into the lane instead of forcing a bad shot is another way he can open things up for himself more on the perimeter.

In other words, Ivey needs to focus on things that he can control, like shot selection, defensive intensity and rebounding. Successes in those areas will get him going and into a rhythm that will eventually lead to some shots falling.

All rookies go through these rough patches, so I am not worried about Ivey overall, but he can’t let a shooting slump affect other areas of his game.