National Basketball Association

Reggie Jackson impressed with offseason additions by Detroit Pistons

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Reggie Jackson is impressed with the offseason additions the Detroit Pistons made, even if many national pundits aren’t.

Reggie Jackson had his best season in the NBA last season as a full-time starting point guard for the Detroit Pistons. Thanks to some clutch play from Jackson–and the rest of the Pistons’ starters–Detroit made the playoffs for the first time in years.

However, a lack of depth and size down low ultimately resulted in a first round exit in the playoffs for the team.

Detroit addressed each of those weaknesses this offseason, and the moves the team made really made an impression on Jackson.

Jackson via detroitpistons.com:

“I’m impressed,” Reggie Jackson said after a pre-training camp scrimmage with Stan Van Gundy’s newly assembled roster that includes free-agent acquisitions Ish Smith, Jon Leuer and Boban Marjanovic and draft picks Henry Ellenson and Michael Gbinije. “I feel like we’ve gotten overlooked because people don’t necessarily think we’ve made some great” – and here Jackson makes air quotes with his hands – “with the emphasis on the quotes, off-season moves. But I think, for our team, we had some great pickups.”

With a full cast now assembled in Detroit, Jackson is ready to lead the way.

“I’m ready for the challenge. I’m ready to be a voice of reason, a voice of serenity and calmness for this team, and try to keep motivating us to push forward. But it’s going to be a collective effort that we all get on this train and keep moving it.”

“I think people are looking for huge names and that’s not necessarily what Detroit’s ever done,” he said. “We do it collectively. We don’t need anyone to believe in us. We’ll still find a way. But I think we shored up our second unit and added some more versatility and some more depth. I think we’ll be scary this year. But you know what? I don’t want to talk about it too much. We’ll let the season speak for itself.”

I really enjoyed reading Jackson’s responses about the upcoming season. His answers showed a certain level of thoughtfulness and maturity that should be encouraging for fans considering his role on the team.

Jackson clearly has high expectations for the Pistons. We’ll see if the Pistons’ play this season lives up.