It is midway through September, and Jalen Duren is still not sighed with the Detroit Pistons. Things aren’t desperate yet, but they are getting there.
I’ve been trying not to buy into the Duren fear mongering, as he still has until October 1st to accept the qualifying offer and even after that, there is another month to go before the season.
My money is still on Duren taking a deal from Detroit, as it’s hard to see how anyone could justify walking away from as much as $190 million for a remote chance at slightly more.
The term “fumbling the bag” may end up having Duren’s face next to it in the dictionary if he’s not careful.
If Duren were to accept the qualifying offer, or made it clear that he fully intended to, the Pistons would almost have no choice but to trade him, but even in that unlikely scenario, they’d still have options.
The Detroit Pistons aren’t going to lose Jalen Duren for nothing
This situation is not ideal, but if Duren signs a deal before the season, no one will remember or care about any of this nonsense, including his teammates.
The Pistons still have sign-and-trade options if they need them, and even if they made the risky decision to actually enter the season with Duren on an QO, they could easily move him before the deadline, though getting equal value for an ALL-NBA player making less than $10 million a year wouldn’t be easy.
Duren would also have some no-trade power in that scenario, though I’m not sure why he’d use it if he’s really so desperate to get out of Detroit, speculation of which I am highly dubious.
Detroit would still have his Bird Rights and the ability to orchestrate a sign and trade next offseason, as they will be able to offer him more money than anyone else, so even if Duren declined an in-season trade, the Pistons would have some limited control.
And even if the Pistons “lost Duren for nothing” which I’ve seen a lot of paranoia about, that wouldn’t even be true.
The Pistons have a big salary slot earmarked for Duren, and if he doesn’t get it, someone else will. When you look at it this way, there isn’t really a way for the Pistons to lose Duren without being compensated in some way.
There is still time to get a deal completed before training camp and start the season without this dark cloud hanging over it, but the Pistons will still have plenty of options even if they don’t sign Duren to a long-term deal.
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