How Andre Drummond Can Evolve into the NBA's New Star Center

It doesn't take much to surmise that Andre Drummond, the Detroit Pistons' promising 21-year-old center, is dripping with superstar potential. 

He's 6'10", 270 pounds and can rumble down the floor quicker than most power forwards.

According to DraftExpress, his max vertical is 33.5 inches. He's built like a battering ram and unapologetically bulldozes opponents with ease. He has soft hands around the rim. 

The NBA has athletes, but not Drummond-like athletes. He's unique in the center position stratosphere, and that's why it's so easy to stare and wonder at the possibilities. 

Yet, through two NBA seasons, Drummond isn't much more than he was coming out of college: A devastating threat around the rim who is harmless outside of the paint. 

The obvious ways to improve compromise most of the basic facets of basketball: Developing a better jump shot, knocking down free throws at a somewhat acceptable rate (higher than, say, 40 percent for his career) and establishing some semblance of a post-up game. The last point is especially important for Drummond moving forward.

But these are giant steps, especially for a player that possesses not even the slightest hint of a crawl toward overcoming them. He could labor at these crafts for years and only show minimal improvement.

When it comes to potential, nothing is guaranteed. 

But it seems Drummond is headed for the new center archetype, one that has discarded back-to-the-basket play for thunderous pick-and-roll alley-oops, rim protection and rebounding.

Anything else is an added bonus but ultimately unnecessary in the scheme of the evolving and preferred offensive style.

This is the Mike D'Antoni spread offense. Two shooters in the corner, one shooter in the slot—the spot at which the three-point line and an extended version of the line marking the width of the paint would theoretically converge—and a pick-and-roll on the opposite slot. 

As the pick-and-roll unfolds, the shooters stay put to stretch help defenders all the way out to the three-point line, and therefore away from the paint. The center, meanwhile, barrels right down the center of the lane. 

Any good pick-and-roll coverage involves the majority of the defense, and this puts players guarding shooters in a bind. Come off the shooter and he's open for a catch-and-shoot three.

Let the roller run free to the rim and he's in prime position for an alley-oop or finish at the rim. 

The better NBA defenses have schemed around this dilemma with varying degrees of success, but the play's simplicity and easy repetition through multiple possessions in a row can be deadly.

It's the same every time in alignment, but unique every time in result. 

The better point guards wait for the defense to show its hand and simply swing the ball into the vacated space. If no help comes, he scores.

But all of that is dependent on the roller being a credible threat to score on a consistent basis.

Though Drummond might seem like the ideal player to fit this role at this point in his career, there are too many flaws in his technique that opponents can exploit.

Take away his troubles at the line, for a moment, and the safety valve it provides for opponents on the verge of giving up a Drummond layup or dunk. Greater areas of struggle involve his pick-setting footwork, namely an inability to release from the pick and get to the rim.

It's a particularly catastrophic flaw in the Pistons offense, considering their lack of shooters and stuffed frontcourt with Josh Smith and Greg Monroe.

Because neither player can legitimately stretch defenders to the arc, every extra inch Drummond sucks in help defenders is crucial. 

Look what happens here against the Chicago Bulls when Drummond doesn't release and roll properly. When he doesn't get a solid piece of Kirk Hinrich, he's slow to untangle himself from the pick-setting chaos and lags behind. 

This allows Carlos Boozer to completely focus on the ball-handler, Brandon Jennings, while also giving Hinrich time to recover. Not to mention that Greg Monroe, who is spaced in the corner, is completely ignored by Joakim Noah. Noah pinches in all the way to the paint for the coming pick-and-roll. 

The paint is completely clogged with defenders, and Jennings settles for a bad pull-up.

We can certainly blame the poor shot selection on Jennings, but the entire corruption of this play can be laid at Drummond's feet. If Drummond jets toward the rim, Carlos Boozer has to drop off in coverage. Maybe Joakim Noah takes a step in as well, allowing Monroe to creep in closer to the basket. 

Either way, Drummond's mere presence streaking toward the rim is enough to force Chicago's entire defense to sag. What's left is possibly an open shooter or a compromised Hinrich struggling to defend an attacking Jennings. 

What turns out to be a bad 21-footer could have been an open shot from inside 15 feet. 

Players like Drummond can't loiter on the perimeter in pick-and-roll situations. Without the threat of a three-point shot, defenses don't have to account for him outside of 10 feet. Idling after setting a pick, therefore, is poisonous to spacing. 

Here's another play with similar spacing issues, this time against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

As Jennings dribbles around Drummond's screen, notice how Drummond slides well above the three-point line to set the screen. Even though Jennings' defender, Kyrie Irving, is just about at the three-point line, Drummond ends up setting the pick at the bottom of the "C" at half court. 

Point guards only need a crease. Bigs don't have to nail the guard for the screen to be effective; as long as the defensive guard is trailing around the pick-setter, the offensive guard will have room to penetrate. 

Drummond makes such an effort to get a piece of Irving that he takes himself out of the play. There's nothing he can do 28 feet away from the hoop. Even if he clips Irving, the action is so far from any type of threatening area that there's plenty of time to recover. 

Even Drummond's "reverse pivot"—the mechanism by which Drummond swings around to roll—isn't quite there yet. Savvy bigs will use this pivot to siphon off the guard even further if he tries to sneak in behind, using it almost like a secondary screen.

Otherwise they'll use it to spin away quickly, which positions their bodies ideally for a pass from the guard. It also gives the ball-handler adequate room to maneuver in an otherwise crowded area. 

In Drummond's reverse pivot above, he doesn't whip around. He allows Irving to slide around without any type of resistance, which means he's all over Jennings again just moments after the Pistons had seemingly created an advantage.

He also doesn't pivot into any type of ball-catching position, meaning he's of no use on the play. It's essentially four-on-five after the pick.

Compare Drummond's reverse pivot to that of Tyson Chandler, a player to whom Drummond can aspire to emulate:

Chandler's pivot is so quick that the Miami Heat do not have time to rotate a helper or pressure the ball enough to cut off passing lanes. The result is an easy dunk.

Detroit's funky roster construction doesn't help matters, specifically when Drummond is forced to pop instead of roll due to the cluster of Detroit players lurking around the paint. 

This is a habit he needs to learn to break. Stan Van Gundy's former Orlando Magic thrived on spacing, using Dwight Howard as the ultimate rim-roller to draw away defenders for drive-and-kick opportunities. Expect much of the same when SVG is able to shape the roster as he pleases. 

But even with the current frontcourt mess in Detroit, consistent and hard rolling from Drummond will force defenses to make decisions.

Even with other players sitting at the elbow or baseline, an offense works best when it forces a defense to choose whom to defend.

Drummond looking for an alley-oop or pass near the rim forces that choice, but it's only possible if Drummond is hanging out in the restricted area.

With time, he'll pick up these subtleties of pick-and-roll play to become an even more dangerous player. 

Soon enough, the potential could turn into massive production.