If there's anyone outside the Pistons organization who can shed light on team dynamics, it's former head coach Stan Van Gundy. Especially when it comes to the relationship between Blake Griffin and Reggie Jackson -- which was put on public blast a couple nights ago -- Van Gundy has a perspective that most observers don't.
Van Gundy traded for both players during his tenure with the Pistons, first Jackson in 2015 and then Griffin last year. Along with Andre Drummond, he tried to build a team around them. We all know how that ended up.
The duo of Griffin and Jackson remains in Van Gundy's wake. The former is having a great season. The latter not so much -- the same goes for the team. The Pistons are 8-19 since December, wiping out what was a promising start.
At one point, as Jackson was carrying on for the camera, Griffin buried his face in a towel in an apparent attempt to hide his frustration. He ultimately smiled and played it off cool, and Jackson pranced away. Then Griffin put his face in the towel again.
To Van Gundy, who appeared Thursday on The Jump with ESPN's Rachel Nichols, it was both an honest mistake by Jackson and evidence of the larger issue Griffin was alluding to.
"Blake’s been having a great season and he’s a great leader. Following them, he’s been talking about this all year, about them being too easily satisfied, about their lack of focus," Van Gundy said. "I think he showed great understanding as a leader when he was giving that press conference. The best time to really lead and criticize, if you will, is after a win because nobody’s sensitive. He’s trying to make that point, Reggie walks in, he doesn’t know what’s going on in the interview. He’s been struggling and had a good game, the team’s been struggling and got a win, so he’s just thinking it's time to celebrate. Blake wants more.
"Yeah, the timing wasn’t good, and I think it sort of illustrates maybe a little bit what Blake's talking about."
Also on the panel was Hall-of-Famer Tracy McGrady, who had his own take on the matter.
"This is the difference between a team that wins a lot of games versus being mediocre, knowing how to close out games. Having a one- or two-possession game versus, man, your starters should be sitting, because they had a double-digit lead going into the fourth quarter and then you have ill-advised shot taking, you have missed communication on the defensive end, turnovers," McGrady said. "That right there costs you games, and I’m sure that’s what he’s speaking of.
"Blake’s trying to take on that leadership role, which I think he’s done a very good job of. Reggie just didn’t have any idea. If Reggie knew what was being said, let’s give him credit, he wouldn’t have walked in there."
The Pistons enter play Friday night versus the Mavericks with a record of 21-26, 1.5 games out of the final playoff spot in the East.