AUBURN HILLS - Andre Drummond enjoyed a fine all-around game Sunday, with 19 points, 16 rebounds and five steals.
But he struggled from the free-throw line, going 1 for 8. He didn't want that gnawing at him when he left Little Caesars Arena, so he went back on the court to practice free throws following the Detroit Pistons' 118-107 victory over Phoenix Suns.
"I actually got undressed and then I thought about it. I can't leave on that note," Drummond said. "Even though we had a good game and I played well, I didn't want to leave with that taste in my mouth of missing so many, because it's been a while since I missed that many in a row. I just wanted to get a couple up, see the ball go in."
Drummond takes a lot of pride in his improvement from the line last season, when he converted on 60.5 percent, after making just 38 percent his first five years in the league.
This season he had made 54.7 percent before Sunday. Suns coach Igor Kokoskov used the hack-a-Dre strategy, one that Drummond dealt with earlier in his career, to put him on the line midway through the fourth quarter.
After Drummond missed 5-of-6 in a span of 46 seconds, coach Dwane Casey took him out of the game.
"I hate doing that because he has improved his free-throw shooting," Casey said. "I don't want to do anything psychologically to him. We're getting stops, but they were coming down and getting threes. We were trading one (made free throw) for threes and that's not a good deal, so that was the main reason we took him out.
"The best way to keep people from doing that is knock down your free throws. And Andre will. No question in my mind he's going to make shots. He does it every day in practice."
Drummond said he wasn't upset about being taken out.
"I was more frustrated at myself, putting myself in a situation to have him take me out," Drummond said. "Down the stretch of games, I need to be better at making those free throws. Even if it's just one out of two, it's better than missing both. I've been doing great all season at knocking down shots at crunch time. Can't let that happen again and move on from it."
Drummond believes this was an aberration and isn't concerned his free-throw shooting will regress.
"It feels like I'm doing everything the same, it just wasn't going in," he said. "Just regroup, reset my mind and get back in that flow again."
The Pistons (10-7) face the New York Knicks Tuesday at LCA (7 p.m., Fox Sports Detroit). The Knicks (7-14) have won three in a row.
Kennard update: Luke Kennard, who suffered a sprained right AC joint on Oct. 25, hasn't been cleared for contact.
"Still working his way through," Casey said. "He can do non-contact stuff with us right now, so probably another week is a good gauge for him."
Ticket promotion: The Detroit Pistons are offering a special holiday ticket package called the "Pistons Holiday Pack" available through Dec. 24. Starting at $150 in the upper level and $300 in the lower level, the package includes two tickets to any three regular season games using the Pistons Mobile App (based on availability). In addition to the tickets, each pack includes a signed Blake Griffin hat and three months of unlimited car washes courtesy of Jax Kar Wash (a $75 value). To purchase the "Pistons Holiday Pack" visit www.pistons.com.