Gores Encourages Drummond After All-Star Game Snub: "You Make Detroit Proud"
By: Will Burchfield
@burchie_kid
If Andre Drummond was out of line on Tuesday night for his crass reaction to being snubbed for the All-Star Game, he's unlikely to hear about it from Pistons owner Tom Gores.
In fact, Gores offered Drummond a slap on the back Wednesday afternoon.
After learning he wasn't named an All-Star reserve, Drummond wrote on Twitter, among other things, ""Gotta be fu**in kidding me lol."
The 24-year-old center is averaging 14.3 points and an NBA-high 15 rebounds per game. He's also made massive strides at the free throw line, where he's shooting a career-best 62.9 percent.
But NBA coaches, who vote on the All-Star reserves, decided Celtics center Al Horford was more deserving. Horford's numbers (13.3 points, 7.7 rebounds) don't stack up to Drummond's, but he's considered a better defender.
In terms of advanced metrics, Drummond has the upper hand. He has a 23.4 player efficiency rating to Horford's 18.8, and 5.9 win shares to Horford's 5.7.
In his Twitter rant, Drummond suggested that playing in a small market may have cost him some votes.
While Drummond has a right to feel cheated, he didn't exactly take the news in stride. Nor did he do himself any favors in terms of public perception.
But he's close friends with Gores, and the Pistons owner won't rebuke the team's best player.
Gores hasn't addressed the media since the season opener on Oct. 18. The Pistons have lost five straight to fall out of the top eight in the East.
