The Motor City has been blessed by the Detroit Tigers' successful play throughout the summer, but some Michiganders just can't wait for basketball to begin. The Detroit Pistons elevated the city's expectations with last season's 44-win performance, which culminated in their first playoff appearance in seven years. Now, fans can't wait to see how Cade Cunningham & Co. will follow it up in 2025-26.
Although a new NBA campaign is exciting, the regular-season action doesn't begin until the middle of October, leaving Pistons fans with a ton of time to kill. Fortunately, former Detroit players have been making headlines all summer long, including a recent guard who just signed a new overseas contract.
Former Pistons Guard Frank Jackson Signs New Overseas Contract
According to Hoops Hype's Alberto De Roa, former Pistons guard Frank Jackson has signed with the Chinese Basketball Association's Ningbo Rockets for the 2025-26 season. Former NBAers Tacko Fall and Zavier Simpson also signed with the Rockets on the same day.
Jackson isn't a stranger to overseas hoops.
The Washington, D.C. native left North America in 2023 to continue his career internationally, spending time with multiple teams in France's LNB Élite (LDLC ASVEL, Nanterre 92) and the CBA (Shanxi Loongs, Jiangsu Dragons, and now Ningbo). He most recently split the 2024-25 campaign with Nanterre and Jiangsu, averaging 11.6 points on .345/.326/.800 shooting in eight games with the former and 20.1 PPG on .397/.342/.825 splits in 33 outings with the latter.
In other words, Jackson is having a lot more success overseas than he did with the Pistons.
The former Duke product spent two seasons in Detroit after signing a two-way deal in December 2020, putting up 10.2 points while shooting 42.3% from the floor and 34.3% from deep in 93 games (13 starts). The Pistons eventually declined the team options on his contract ahead of the 2022-23 season, leading to him signing with the Utah Jazz, which lasted one game before he left the NBA.
Jackson is offensively gifted, but players need to be more well-rounded if they want to hang in the NBA. The 6-foot-3 guard's lack of defensive reliability is a key reason why he couldn't stick with the Pistons in the long term, and also why he likely won't step foot on an NBA floor again.
Whether or not he can change his reputation remains to be seen. For now, Pistons fans will continue to monitor him from afar until that changes.