Reggie Jackson, Pistons Agree on 80 Million Dollar Contract
Reggie Jackson re-signs a five year contract worth 80 million dollars with Detroit Pistons.
After losing their first point guard Brandon Jennings due to an Achilles injury, Detroit Pistons decided to re-sign a big five year contract with explosive backup point guard Reggie Jackson. Last year, Jackson was acquired from Oklahoma Thunder.
It looks like turning down last year’s Oklahoma offer of 47 million dollars and signing the five-year contract was a good thing for Reggie.
Pistons will be building a team around Jackson and their big man star Andre Drummond. They’ve acquired Ersan Ilyasova from Milwaukee Bucks and they’ve picked up Marcus Morris from the Phoenix Suns plus free agent Aron Baynes from the San Antonio Spurs.
They did loose Greg Monroe who got a max contract from Milwaukee Bucks. Detroit Pistons are hoping that Ilyasova and Morris will be able to fill up the hole that was left with losing Monroe.
Jackson, who’s 25 this year, had a solid second part of the season with Detroit Pistons. He averaged 17.6 points, 9.2 assists, 4.7 rebounds and 44% shooting in 27 games for the Pistons.
It may look like the Detroit Pistons overpaid a mediocre player relative to his position. The market is overcrowded with great talent on the point guard position.
So why did Detroit pay so much for a guy who isn’t among the top 15 point guards in the league? Upon a closer look, Reggie’s path resembles Kyle Lowry’s, Mike Conley’s or Jrue Holiday’s paths.
All needed more time to develop into all-star point guards. Reggie Jackson is a very athletic guard with a good jump-shot mechanics, and will shoot more efficiently. He’s also a player who’s capable of improving defensively.
Stan Van Gundy got the guy he wanted. Reggie has a whole summer in front of him to train with the Pistons and to get deeper in their basketball system and Gundy’s game philosophy.
Considering the lack of interest in Jackson (beside his own team) who’s a good player, one question remains. Could have Detroit kept Reggie Jackson for less money even with the players salary cap ready to reach sky high limits for the next season?
Detroit Pistons seem sure of how Jackson fits with the Pistons team, especially with Andre Drummond and how he adapts to Stan Van Gundy’s system.
One thing that is sure is that Reggie has some big steps to make to prove everyone that Detroit’s gamble was a good one.
Image Source: usathoopshype.com
