The Detroit Pistons are hoping shooting guru Fred Vinson can work his magic on Ausar Thompson and Ron Holland II and there are encouraging signs so far.
Holland knocked down 7-of-15 from long range in his three Summer League performances, a small but encouraging sample that is hopefully a sign of big things to come.
Holland had a solid rookie season and played important, impact minutes that sped up his growth. Even though his shot looked fluid, he only knocked down 23.8 percent of his 3-point attempts, which will obviously be a point of emphasis in his first offseason, as Holland mentioned in a recent article by Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press, saying,
“I feel like me and Freddie V (Pistons assistant coach Fred Vinson) have been in the gym, for sure.”
Summer League is a tiny sample size in an unstructured environment, but you can be sure that the Pistons are happy with what they saw from Holland, as his growth as a shooter unlocks his own potential as an offensive player and alleviates some of the concern about shooting and depth from the bench.
Holland is already effective attacking the rim, so if he can start knocking down corner 3’s at a decent clip, his offensive ceiling changes considerably.
Consistency is the key and Fred Vinson has a history of helping shooters get there.
Fred Vinson fixing broken shots
Holland has a solid foundation to work with, as his shot is smooth, he really just needs more reps and consistency.
Coach Fred Vinson has had much taller tasks in the past working with players like Lonzo Ball, whose shooting mechanics were all over the place and needed big changes. Ball jumped up to 37.5 percent in one offseason with Vinson, who he credited as a big part of his improvement.
Ball has been an accurate, high-volume 3-point shooter since, in the limited action he’s seen.
Brandon Ingram, Herb Jones and Jose Alvarado also made big leaps as shooters with Vinson’s tutelage, so it’s not out of the question that these numbers we are seeing from Holland in Summer League are for real.
He’s not going to shoot 47 percent, but if Holland can even get into the mid-30's, he’s going to be a much larger part of the Pistons’ rotation next season, as he is already disruptive on the defensive end and attacking the rim in transition.
Summer League numbers are only the beginning, as Holland still has a lot to prove as a shooter, but it’s promising that the 20-year-old appears to be making strides.