Detroit Pistons big man Andre Drummond forged his name alongside several NBA greats with a rare 20-20 milestone.
In their 115-113 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday, Drummond stuffed the stat sheet with 23 points and 20 rebounds. This marks his sixth 20-20 game of the season — his third season posting such numbers.
Only four other players in NBA history have achieved six 20-20 games in at least three seasons: Moses Malone, Dwight Howard, Hakeem Olajuwon, and Shaquille O'Neal.
Andre Drummond (23p, 20r) notched his 6th 20 PT/20 REB game of the season – making it his 3rd season with at least 6 such games. Since 1976-77, only 4 other players have done this in 3+ seasons: Moses Malone (7), Dwight Howard (4), Hakeem Olajuwon (3), & Shaquille O'Neal (3). pic.twitter.com/gmWhhhVdYo
— NBA.com/Stats (@nbastats) January 8, 2020
In addition, Drummond's 20-20 over the Cavs marks his 78th career 20-20 game. Since the ABA-NBA merger, only Dennis Rodman, Malone, and Howard have tallied more 20-20 games than the Pistons center.
The @DetroitPistons Andre Drummond now has 78 career 20-rebound games. The only players since the ABA-NBA merger with more such games are Dennis Rodman, Moses Malone, and Dwight Howard.
— Justin Kubatko (@jkubatko) January 8, 2020
For the season, Drummond is averaging 17.4 points and a league-leading 15.9 rebounds with the Pistons. This is his third straight season leading the league in rebounds and fourth time in his career.
These monster statistics may be the sole reason why Drummond has been the subject of various trade speculations as of late. Rumors said that teams like the Atlanta Hawks and Cleveland Cavaliers, among others, have an interest in arranging a trade package in exchange for the big man.
Andre Drummond and the Pistons are aware of this. While head coach Dwane Casey noted that such rumors are inevitable, he also believes that it's a sign that the center is doing great things on the floor.
“But most of the players in this league understand there's always going to be rumors — and if you're about anything, you're always going to have interest,” Casey explained as he downplayed the rumors.
“If you're not producing or not getting the job done, nobody's going to be calling, you're not going to be seen in the rumors section. But if you're doing a good job or elite at what you do, people are going to call and have interest in you. There's always going to be rumors.”