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Is Reggie Jackson missing piece to Detroit Pistons playoff push?

By Mike Dallas

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Despite being shorthanded Friday night, the Detroit Pistons were able to defend their home court and knock off the Chicago Bulls 100-91 and inch closer to the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

It’s safe to say the Pistons are making a playoff push with the recent acquisition of guard Reggie Jackson and bringing back a familiar face in Tayshaun Prince at the NBA Trade Deadline Thursday. While their playoff hopes rest on their big men, Andre Drummond and Greg Monroe, adding Jackson takes away some of that pressure from the two big men.

At 22-33 and just 1 ½ games out from the eighth seed, it’s obvious Detroit was missing something and while D.J. Augustine had a hot stretch as a starter, it was very much up in the air if they were going to make the playoffs or not.

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The playoffs are not guaranteed with Jackson running the show but there is a higher belief now, especially with what we have seen him do in the stretch where former teammate Russell Westbrook was out. Currently Jackson is averaging 12.8 points, 4.3 assist and 4 rebounds in 50 games with the Thunder. However, in his 13 games as a starter, Jackson averaged 20 points, 7.8 assist and shot 42 percent from the floor.

You could also argue that Augustin put up similar numbers this year as a starter and as a reserve, so how does Jackson help the team. With the way the game is played today, in order to win you need a dominant, athletic and aggressive point guard who can get to the basket and Augustin simply was not that guy.

So is adding Jackson enough to lift the Pistons to the seventh or eighth seed? Of course. Is he the missing piece to lead the team to the finals? Of course not but Pistons fans will settle on making it back to the playoffs this year.

He’s shown that he’s capable of leading a team but it’s going to take a little more than that to make the playoffs. Detroit is going to need Jackson to play the way he did during the 13 game stretch he had with the Thunder and more importantly, play his game.

Jackson is exactly the type of guard that he’s been wanting all season, which is a slasher who can get to the rim at will, creating problems inside and finishes well at the rim. He gives the team that aggressiveness and hunger they have lacked from the point guard position all season.

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Jackson’s aggression and skills should be enough to get the team where they want to be at seasons end.

Now Reggie Jackson isn’t the second coming but he complements the rest of the team well and fits into what head coach/team President Stan Van Gundy wants. Nor is he the Rasheed Walllace acquisition that propelled the Pistons to the 2004 NBA Championship, he’s simply enough to get us back into the playoffs.

Jackson has been yearning to be a starter and he finally has his shot on a young team that’s trying to make a push. Whether or not he is able to do so is completely up to him. His confidence seems to be pretty high.

“I’ve always dreamed about this, and I was never sure it would happen.” Jackson told Yahoo Sports. “Stan believes in me, in the leader that I can be. He believes in the player that I can be, and I’ve always imagined having a coach like this, an opportunity like this, in the NBA.”

If there is a concern about Reggie, it’s on defense. To be fair, none of the Pistons guards on the team this year have been defensive juggernauts, but when the time called for it, they showed up…for the most part, now, Reggie has to do the same thing.

The newest Piston is expected to make his debut, Sunday afternoon when the Washington Wizards come to the Palace of Auburn Hills.

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