Reggie-Jackson-3-26-15.jpg

Pistons guard Reggie Jackson has had a hot hand lately, both literally and figuratively.

(Melanie Maxwell | MLive.com)

AUBURN HILLS - The past five games have seen Reggie Jackson play his best basketball since being acquired by the Detroit Pistons in a trade deadline deal with the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Jackson has averaged 20.2 points and 12.2 assists in helping the Pistons win four of those five games.

He's certainly had a hot hand. Actually, make it hot hands - plural.

Anyone who has watched Jackson closely when he's been on the bench this season might have noticed something a little unusual about his attire. In addition to the standard NBA uniform, Jackson also dons a pair of gloves when he's not in the game.

Gloves?

Yup, it seems the fourth-year point guard has a problem keeping his hands warm while not in the game so he began wearing the gloves while playing for the Thunder.

"I found out in OKC I had a problem with my hands getting extremely cold," said Jackson, 24. "Once I started running, I started losing feeling in my extremities and the Oklahoma City training staff, and especially (head trainer) Joe Sharpe, found a way to get me hand warmers and keep my hands warm so I can keep feeling the ball.

"I'd get out of the game and my hands would get to the point where they were literally freezing. They're basically winter gloves but from a hunting store. They got hand warmers in them. You push a button on them and they keep my hands nice and warm and keep me ready for the game."

Do they help Jackson maintain a hot hand - er, hands - when things are going well?

"Maybe keeps the ball hot for my teammates to stay hot," he joked. "They've been shooting lights out and hopefully keep it up."

Most Improved Player: Second-year guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope has seen his numbers get better virtually across the board this season. His scoring average is up from 5.9 to 12.7, his shooting percentage is up from .396 to .406, his rebounding has improved from 2.0 to 3.1 and his assists are up from 0.7 to 1.3. "I think he's one of the most improved players in the league and it's exciting to think about what he can do going forward," said coach Stan Van Gundy. "He's a tough-minded guy who works at it very, very hard and I think he has a great future."

Looking toward the future: Jackson will be a restricted free agent after the season and the Pistons plan on doing everything possible to lock him up long-term. Jackson sounds a lot like somebody who is open to that when he talks about playing with Caldwell-Pope and Andre Drummond in the future. "It's going to be scary once those two who figure out who they are," he said. "This team, we're trying to figure out our identity. Detroit has always been known for being a defensive team so we're trying to keep that tradition alive. We understand that Stan has built the team with that kind of foresight. With our length we can get after it. I think KP and myself are going to try to get this backcourt to be the best in the league. We have a long way to go but he's only 22. We're young. We're trying to get to know each other, spend time together and get to know each other on and off the court."

No. 400 on tap this weekend? Detroit is Van Gundy's third stop as an NBA head coach. He spent three years in Miami and five in Orlando before joining the Pistons this season. If the Pistons can win their next two games Friday in Orlando and Sunday in Miami, Van Gundy would join the list of coaches with at least 400 NBA victories. Van Gundy has an overall record of 398-252 (.612). He was 112-73 (.605) with Miami and 259-135 (.657) with Orlando. This season, the Pistons are 27-44 under Van Gundy, who will finish with the first losing record of his NBA career.

-- Download the Detroit Pistons on MLive app for iPhone and Android

-- Like MLive's Detroit Pistons Facebook page