NBA Trade Rumors: Pistons examining market for Andre Drummond, Reggie Jackson

After a disappointing season in Detroit where the team’s two biggest stars were the source of the majority of its struggles, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that Andre Drummond and Reggie Jackson are not untouchable.

A new report from Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders indicates that the Detroit Pistons are gauging the trade market for Jackson and Drummond.

But that doesn’t mean anything is likely to happen.

Pistons head honcho Stan Van Gundy has been as candid as a front office executive as he has been as a head coach, and he has said in the past that he and his executives are constantly probing the league to get a sense of player value.

Van Gundy has prided himself on the level of due diligence and preparation in the organization since the moment he arrived in Detroit.

I’ll never forget how Van Gundy often bragged about being prepared for any of a multitude of contingencies as Greg Monroe headed into restricted free agency.

Whether Van Gundy was truly prepared for, or even counted on, Monroe’s eventual decision to sign his qualifying offer and leave as an unrestricted free agent we’ll never know.

So Van Gundy gauging interest in his high-priced duo are about as surprising as a missed Drummond free throw. But Van Gundy has also been extremely patient, perhaps overly patient, with his roster.

He was patient to a fault with the Josh Smith situation. He has been patient through the many growing pains of players like Drummond and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who have both had the green light on offense. And he was exceedingly patient as Reggie Jackson tried to play himself back into shape throughout last season, with largely disastrous results.

So does that mean Drummond and Jackson are definitely both going to be on the team next year?

Hell no.

Van Gundy might have shown patience and expressed a long-term vision for the franchise, but he’s also never been afraid to be decisive. Once a conclusion has been reached he’s not been afraid to make a controversial move.

Exhibit A would be not just benching an ineffective Josh Smith, but releasing him even knowing it would be a $5.4 million albatross on his books until 2019. He wasn’t afraid to trade for Reggie Jackson after Brandon Jennings went down, and he jumped at the chance to add Tobias Harris midseason.

If Van Gundy sees a deal that serves the long-term interest of the Pistons but means dealing Drummond, he’d do it in a heartbeat. But a deal like that is no given. So, yeah, he’s putting feelers out and see what comes back.