Reggie Jackson was smiling. Laughing. And smiling some more.

His knee was feeling fine. Better than fine.

“I’m great,” the Detroit Pistons' point guard said Thursday at Avery Bradley’s introductory news conference. “I’m good. As soon as we get back to camp, I’m excited to play with my new teammate. I don’t think I can tell you how ecstatic I am.”

It's because Jackson knows Bradley, one of the best two-way guards in the NBA, will make him a better basketball player. “It’s only going to elevate my game,” Jackson said.

Bradley will take some of the pressure off Jackson to handle the ball on every possession, and it will allow Jackson to become a different kind of threat.

“We haven’t had as much secondary ball handling as we would like and we have really been dependent on our point guards,” Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy said.

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As Van Gundy started talking, you could see the wheels spinning in his mind. It was like he was already diagramming plays, thinking about options and all the new possibilities.

“Reggie has improved greatly as a shooter,” Van Gundy said. “Now, if somebody else can handle the ball, and the ball can come back to him, or he can run his pick and roll, and the ball can go to somebody else, and now, can get a second pick and roll, that’s the way the game is played now.”

So Bradley should make Jackson better. A year ago, Jackson struggled through an injury-hampered season, averaging just 14.5 points per game. There were plenty of rumors that he was going to be traded.

But he's still here, and he says he’s healthy again.

If Bradley, a 39% three-point shooter last season, and Jackson can play at a high level and stay healthy, that should create all kinds of match-up problems for other teams.

“It’s two very good guards,” Van Gundy said. “Both of them can score the ball. It will make it really hard matchup wise for other teams. Where are you going to put your better defender? Where are you going to put your weaker defender? Both of those guys are going to be able to exploit matchups.”

Jackson and Bradley have a history. They started playing against each other on the summer circuit when they were in high school.

“Avery won’t even remember,” Jackson said. “We played when he was 16. I hated playing him then … I just remember Avery. There was something about him. He was so competitive. He doesn’t talk much. At that age, he was (tough).”

Sure enough, Bradley didn’t remember.

“He played me in AAU?” Bradley said. “I didn’t know that.”

The more Bradley thought about it, the more it started to make sense to him. And the more he thinks about pairing up with Jackson, the more he starts to smile.

Bradley and Jackson already share a strong mutual respect.

“I think it could be special,” he said. “I think we can raise each other’s play to another level, that’s what it’s all about. Reggie is a special player, in every way. I feel Reggie can be an elite guard in this league. Not that that that means anything coming from me. But I’m confident enough in his game, that I know that if he’s playing at a high level, our team can be very good this year.”

Bradley brings a defensive mentality that is bound to spread to others.

Every night, he will be assigned to stop the best guard on the opposing team.

And his style of defense could be contagious to everybody on the team.

At least, that’s what Van Gundy is hoping.

“Absolutely, it gets contagious,” Van Gundy said. “We all know that what inspires us is what people do. And I think the approach that Avery takes defensively is inspirational. I definitely think it will rub off on other people.”

How long will the Pistons have Bradley? Is this a one-year rental?

We have no idea. But for this season at least, this looks like an intriguing fit.

“He wants to be great defensively,” Jackson said. “He has such respect for the game that he doesn’t let you breathe. I’m sure we are going to have good battles when we play against each other (in practice). But it’s going to be more fun to play with him for 82 games.”

In a new arena.

At a time when this team feels like it has started a new beginning.

“Detroit, I think we should be happy,” Jackson said. “I know I woke up happy. It was unfortunate to lose (Marcus) Morris (in the trade for Bradley). It was unfortunate that we didn’t bring KCP (Kentavious Caldwell-Pope) back. But to add a guy like Avery Bradley to your roster, you are wining. He’s a guy who is going to do everything right off the court and on the court, he brings it every night.”

And then, Jackson started smiling again.

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Contact Jeff Seidel: jseidel@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @seideljeff. To read his recent columns, go to freep.com/sports/jeff-seidel.

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