Andre
Drummond recently won his first NBA All-Star selection and the
22-year-old showcased some of his skills in a rather surprising manner
ahead of this weekend's spectacle in Canada.
The
22-year-old is not known for his three-point shooting, instead for his
dunks and rebounds, but he recorded the longest made shot of the season
so far in the Detroit Pistons' 103-89 defeat by the Toronto Raptors.
With
just seconds remaining in the third quarter, the Pistons centre tried a
'hail-Mary' shot from 71 feet that flew straight into the hoop in front
of an ecstatic home support at The Palace of Auburn Hills.
Detroit Pistons' Andre Drummond (left) scored from 71 feet during their 103-89 defeat by the Toronto Raptors
The 22-year-old's shot sailed into the hoop at the end of the third quarter - to the amazement of everyone
The last
player to make a shot from that distance was Jose Calderon in 2008.
Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James is still the last player to
surpass Drummond's and Calderon's distance - making an 82-footer in
2007.
However,
the NBA record for the longest shot belongs to Baron Davis, who made
one from 89 feet against the Milwaukee Bucks while with the Charlotte
Hornets in 2001.
Drummond's
buzzer-beater shot on Monday reduced the scoreline to five points for
Detroit as Toronto led 70-65 at the end of the third quarter.
Drummond attacks the rim to score a dunk for Detroit during their clash against the Raptors on Monday night
However,
the Raptors went on an 11-2 run at the start of the fourth quarter to
pull away from their Eastern Conference rivals to record their 14th
victory in their last 15 games.
Kyle Lowry scored 25 points while Terrence Ross added a further 18 for the Canadian franchise.
Drummond had 12 points and 13 rebounds for the Pistons.
Reflecting
on Drummond's mesmerising shot, Lowry said: 'That shot could have gave
them some momentum, but we had the ball coming up the court, and we had
to be aggressive.'
Kyle Lowry (left) scored 25 points for Toronto as they won Monday's encounter at The Palace of Auburn Hills