Detroit fans, how good is Drummond's defense really?

[Han Solo]

gasol has blocked 1.5 and more shoot in last 4 out of 5 seasons. noah 4 out of 6.

you are right on chandler.

Drummond has had more than 1.5 blocks per season in every year of his career. He'll get back up there, they're still only 14 games into the season (probably will be there after tonight).

1.5 is not enough for him. he should be top 5 blocker in the leauge. he is athletic, strong, tall, has long arms.

He values rebounds more.. it's a percentage game.. You can see at times he expects a miss. His fouls seem down. He's averaging a ton of mins a game. Most bigs can't even stay on the court.. I'll take the dip in blocks if it means he's on the floor more. I just see a guy that is playing for the rebound at all times.. he's a ****ing beast.

[Cowology]

I don't really care if he blocks a lot of shots, it's about how disruptive he is. Get in position, put your arms up and make the other guy make a tough shot. He doesn't have to go swatting at everything, but Dre could definitely do a better job of contesting and altering shots. Eventually he *should* develop into a 2-3 bpg type player.

[Redeemed]

I'm attempting to make a statistical model that reflects reality. If by the eye test Drummond doesn't appear to be as defensively game changing as Duncan, then perhaps my model is overweighting the impact of steals and team defense on an individual player's capability.

In other words, is the Pistons defense poor in spite of Drummond's efforts, as DRTGs would suggest, or is he not actually that gamechanging, as on/off would suggest?

Drummond has the physical tools to an elite defender, but the mental aspect of it is trailing a bit. Physically, he's stepped out against elite guards and stripped them in iso plays. He has also wiped out what have appeared to be open drives down the lane. But mentally, he can get lost against players with deft footwork and in certain offensive rotations (ball movement) can he can lost trying to figure out where he should be.

Coming into this season, he gotten a better concept of what it means to lock down the paint. His one on one defense has improved, but at times looks lost. Looking at his match up against Cousins and Monroe, you can see there's definite room for growth. Drummond is a ways off from being a defensive game changer like Drummond, but he's coming. And once he gets there, he'll be the most dominant big in the league.

[hoophabit]

Drummond has had more than 1.5 blocks per season in every year of his career. He'll get back up there, they're still only 14 games into the season (probably will be there after tonight).

1.5 is not enough for him. he should be top 5 blocker in the leauge. he is athletic, strong, tall, has long arms.

He values rebounds more.. it's a percentage game.. You can see at times he expects a miss. His fouls seem down. He's averaging a ton of mins a game. Most bigs can't even stay on the court.. I'll take the dip in blocks if it means he's on the floor more. I just see a guy that is playing for the rebound at all times.. he's a ****ing beast.

In a word, yes! AD seems to be making a conscious effort to avoid foul trouble and stay on the floor. Shot blocking is great fun to watch, but if you're not careful can lead to foul trouble. It also often puts a player out of position to rebound, and that's Dre's primary responsibility.