Pistons now set up for the least exciting move of the offseason

The Detroit Pistons essentially folded all of their offseason moves into one big deal, culminating in a six-team trade last night. 

It was all a very loud way of adding Taurean Prince and Gary Harris, while clearing more space under the tax apron, presumably to re-sign Jalen Duren. 

The Duren signing is probably inevitable at this point, but it has come to a frustrating standstill with neither side willing to blink. But at some point, we are likely to see Duren sign a deal for somewhere around 25 percent of the cap, which they now have space for while still staying out of the tax. 

I am certainly not trying to speak for the whole fanbase, but there's a general lack of enthusiasm around bringing Duren back, at least in the media and fan discourse online.

Even though it might be the biggest move the Pistons make this offseason, it doesn’t feel like there’s a lot of excitement around the eventual Duren signing, as offseason events and better understanding of financial team building have put a bit of a damper on it. 

We should probably be more excited about Jalen Duren 

Duren and the Pistons have gotten into this unfortunate stalemate that may seem to be personal on the surface, but I can assure you it is not. These are just agents trying to get the best deals for their clients. 

It’s a bunch of suits on conference calls, not the team. 

If and when Duren signs, he’ll be putting in the work with his teammates and everything will be fine, as they all understand the business side of this. 

It shouldn’t mar what should be a good thing, which is the Pistons locking up their 22-year-old All-NBA center for the foreseeable future at a price they can live with and won’t cripple the team. 

After two postseason flops, Duren knows exactly what he needs to work on, which is his defense (again) and adding more nuance to his offensive game so that he’s not so easy to stop in the playoffs. 

Duren isn’t a perfect player, but we should be a bit more excited about a guy his age with his potential. Many of us questioned Duren last offseason but he proved us wrong and made a big leap, and there is no reason to believe it won't happen again.

The contract and all the negotiation nonsense shouldn't matter as much, but of course it does. 

Money matters and everyone knows it 

Fans and media are far more savvy about knowing what these contacts mean to team building under the current CBA. 

That’s why we see people instantly questioning a Donovan Mitchell extension the second it happens, not because he’s not a great player, but because of what that contract will mean to Cleveland’s ability to build a team around him. 

People are correct to be leery of a contract for Duren that goes beyond what is reasonable, as it could potentially harm the team financially down the road and hamper their ability to have a deep roster around him. 

If Detroit keeps Duren, it will be a win for team chemistry and hopefully their success on the court, but all big contracts come with added risk now, which is what the Pistons are trying to mitigate in these negotiations. 

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