Apr 6, 2018; Detroit, MI, USA; Detroit Pistons center Andre Drummond (0) pours water on guard Reggie Jackson (1) after the game against the Dallas Mavericks at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports Raj Mehta
Camden, N.J. - It was the day after a victory over the Phoenix Suns to "improve" to 19-34 that the Detroit Pistons pulled the plug.
They traded All-Star big man Andre Drummond to the Cleveland Cavaliers for Brandon Knight, John Henson and a 2023 second-round pick.
It was an acknowledgement that being objectively bad wasn't bad enough anymore. Even if the duo of Drummond and point guard Reggie Jackson made something resembling decent music when they shared the floor together (plus-1.48 points per 100 possessions in nearly 7,000 minutes, per PBPStats), it was just enough to not sink to the depths of the league and inch toward the top of the draft lottery.
Jackson's waiver followed almost two weeks later.
It was the end of a mediocre era, and that might be a generous description of the state of those Pistons.
But, it was also the separation of peanut buttery from jelly, of burger from fries, of Mike Lowrey from Marcus Burnett.
"I mean, Jack and I are inseparable. We've been that way from the day he came to Detroit to the present day," Drummond told reporters at Sixers Media Day on Monday.
"We've kept a relationship regardless of us playing for other teams. Him coming here to Philadelphia is probably one of the best things that could've happened."
Head coach Nick Nurse will inevitably try to tap into that fit with Philadelphia's second unit.
Plus-1.48 points per 100 possessions is nothing to write home about. But, Pistons lineups with Drummond but not Jackson were outscored by 3.11 points per 100 possessions in more than 7,500 minutes during their time as teammates in Detroit, per PBP.
It was worse when the lineup was inverted.
Groups with Jackson but not Drummond were minus-4.63 points per 100 possessions in almost 1,650 minutes, according to PBP.
They are by no means flawless players. The Pistons weren't a case of a bad build around a modern iteration of Shaq and Kobe. They were downright bad. Drummond and Jackson, as individual players and as a duo, were not good enough to excite the imagination with visions of what could be with the right pieces surrounding them.
But, when put on the court together, Drummond and Jackson directed bad teams toward respectability.
How long will it take to re-acclimate after years under different employers?
"Like riding a bike," Jackson said on Monday.
"So, you might fall every now and then. But, you pick it up pretty quickly."
The quicker the better for the Sixers. President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey and franchise center Joel Embiid more or less said that the superstar's workload will be managed throughout the season with eyes focused on optimizing health come playoff time.
Assuming he is healthy, Drummond will start when Embiid is not available.
That will be when Philadelphia relies on Drummond and Jackson to rekindle their magic most.
"Just in terms of the backup point guard role, for me coming off the bench and then having a familiar point guard to play alongside," Drummond said.
"It’s gonna be very dangerous in that pick-and-roll.”
