Detroit Pistons: The rookie chemistry is there with Ivey and Duren

Jaden Ivey had 30 points and seven assists in last night’s loss to the Miami Heat and three of his dimes ended in Jalen Duren dunks.

It has been a common theme when the two of them are on the floor together, as Ivey has more assists to Duren than any other Piston.

Starting with the very first play of Summer League, the two have been in sync and their game has just continued to grow as the season has progressed:

But it isn’t just the lobs and dump-offs in transition, as the two have been much better together in the half court and Ivey seems to know where his big man his going to be. He hit Duren with three dimes last night, all of which were on cuts by Duren when Ivey drew defenders:

Duren has the best hands of any of the Pistons’ big men and can catch these kinds of passes in traffic. Ivey threw some bullets to Duren last night that the big man handled on the move.

It’s been a lost season in many ways, but it’s going to be fun to watch Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren continue to feed off each other, and it’s not just the assists and dunks.

Detroit Pistons: Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren

Both Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren are on the fringes of making the All-Rookie team, Ivey trying to use a late run to make the 1st team and Duren trying to surge to make the 2nd.

We’ve seen the two hook up for dunks all season, but Duren and Ivey have other ways of feeding off each other’s games.

Duren gives Ivey an emergency outlet, which is important for a young guard who has the tendency to jump before he knows what he wants to do with the ball. Ivey has cut that down as the season has gone on, but with Duren, he can just throw it up to the hoop and the big man will go get it, which is a nice insurance policy to have.

Duren is also the Pistons’ best screen setter (I don’t think I’ve seen James Wiseman actually make contact on a screen) who clears space for Ivey to do his thing. This was evident last night when Ivey started cooking in the mid-range, a lot of which came behind Duren screens.

Ivey definitely needs to get more efficient around the rim, but when he does miss, Duren is often there to clean it up for the put back after Ivey gets the attention of the defense.

We obviously missed out on a season where Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren all got to play and develop together, but the two rookies have made the most of their opportunities together and complement each other’s games.