3 huge overreactions to the Pistons’ blowout loss to the Knicks

Detroit Pistons: Jalen Duren is ahead of schedule

I thought Jalen Duren looked like the best big man on the floor last night for the Pistons, as he was aggressive on the boards, ran the floor hard and challenged shots.

He even had a few nice switches and defensive stands on the perimeter, which is usually the most difficult defensive adjustment for young bigs when they get to the NBA.

Duren ended the game with 14 rebounds and a block in just 24 minutes and had the best plus/minus of any of the guys who played more than 20 minutes. He only scored two points but should have had a couple of more dunks had the Pistons’ guards been able to get him the ball, as both Cade and Killian tried to get it to him in the post but threw it off the top of the backboard.

All signs are now pointing to Duren being part of the rotation to start the season, especially with Nerlens Noel out with an injury. He certainly didn’t look like the youngest player in the NBA last night, and Detroit is going to need his size.

The only problem I see is that Duren playing backup center leaves Marvin Bagley III as the power forward in the second unit which is not ideal. He launched two 3-point shots last night (bricked them both) underscoring how he should be taking most of his shots from inside of nine feet.

We can’t get too worked up about the first preseason game, but it would have been nice to not see some of Detroit’s biggest weaknesses on display right away.