The Detroit Pistons couldn’t come to extension agreements with Jaden Ivey or Jalen Duren, which makes their futures with the team murky for the first time.
The Pistons are playing it cautiously by not committing to their young core until they are certain they are the right fit and they will have some tough choices to make along the way, as it’s unlikely they can pay all of these young players with Cade Cunningham already on a max deal that got even more expensive after he made All-NBA last season.
With new contracts for Ausar Thompson and Ron Holland lurking in the near future, the Pistons will have a tough time keeping them all and Vincent Goodwill of ESPN thinks Ivey could be the odd man out. In a recent podcast, he said that Duren seemed a more certain building block and that he’d be watching Ivey’s season closely as the one the Pistons decide not to pay.
This has only been further complicated by the injury that will keep Ivey sidelined for at least four weeks, so even though the season is still in its infancy, it’s not too early to be concerned.
The Pistons need Jaden Ivey, but will they pay him?
Ivey’s immediate future with the team is secure, as no one is going to trade for him anytime soon and the Pistons desperately need his skills, as we saw in last night’s dud against the Bulls.
The Pistons need a second creator and guy who can get buckets, as they just don’t have the shooting to space the floor without a second threat, one that Ivey was supposed to provide this season.
The Pistons need Ivey back as soon as possible, there is no debate.
But that doesn’t mean they are going to pay him at the end of the season, as the two sides were reportedly far apart on a deal. If the Pistons foresee that situation carrying over to next offseason, then we are going to hear Ivey’s name in every trade rumor, especially if he comes back and plays well.
It’s a tough spot, as the Pistons need him, but have difficult choices to make that have been made more challenging by Ivey’s absence. The best-case scenario is that Ivey returns, plays well, evolves into the second star the Pistons need and they are happy to pay him, but it’s a situation that everyone will be monitoring closely.