Frank Jackson didn't have a home when this season began. He may have found one in Detroit for the next several years.
Too far? Too soon? Probably, but Jackson's play over the past month has thrust him into the conversation of the Pistons' future. He scored 20 points in Detroit's win over Cleveland on Monday night, his third straight game with at least 18.
"He's one of our best offensive players," Dwane Casey said after Jackson put up 19 points in last Saturday's loss to the Wizards.
Jackson has been a sparkplug for Detroit since entering the rotation. He's averaged 11.4 points and shot over 42 percent from three in the past 20 games, scoring in double digits in 11 of his 16 games off the bench.
The Cavs had shaved a nine-point halftime deficit to three on Monday when Casey put Jackson in the game with about five minutes left in the third quarter. He scored eight points in two minutes, capped off by an acrobatic buzzer-beating layup, to rebuild Detroit's lead to eight entering the fourth.
"You know when Frank goes in he's locked and loaded. He's a definite threat on the floor," Casey said. "I think he's playing excellent basketball right now, for a two-way player."
Casey didn't add that last part to diminish what Jackson has done. He added it to highlight what he's done, to point out the improbability of his consistent production. This would be impressive for anybody. Doubly so for a former second-round pick on a two-way contract.
Jackson, 22, was waived by the Thunder a couple days before the start of this season, after spending the first three years of his career with the Pelicans. The Pistons scooped him up in late December and Jackson didn't crack the rotation until the middle of March.
Now he's cracking the club's future.
"I feel like when those minutes came consistently, it's just going to keep getting better over time," Jackson said Monday night. "I love the group that we have, I love playing with them. Obviously the record is not what we want it to be, but we still feel like (we're going) step by step, brick by brick."
Jackson will be a free agent after this season. Nothing's guaranteed with 14 games remaining, but at this rate he's earned himself at least another year in Detroit. Especially if he continues to shoot so well from beyond the arc. Casey said Jackson "opens up everything" when he's on the floor.
Jackson was a good three-point shooter in his lone college season at Duke. His percentage dipped in his first two pro seasons, but he seems to have found his NBA range. Which is why Cavs star Collin Sexton bit on Jackson's shot fake in crunch time Monday night, allowing Jackson to get to the rim and put the Pistons up two with 30 seconds to play.
What's next for Jackson?
"I think just keep extending that range," he said.
And extending his stay in Detroit.
