We have officially hit the midway point of July, and restricted free agent Jalen Duren has yet to find the max contract he's searching for on the open market.
No news around the league leads to people trying to make news of anything, which is exactly what the latest spin of words from Chris Haynes' update on Duren's situation with the Pistons has led to.
The ongoing saga between Duren and the Detroit Pistons has been a continuous game of leverage, where both sides have refused to budge from their current stance.
Detroit made an offer to their All-NBA big man that they feel is more than justifiable and enough to satisfy the center in hopes of landing him on a team-friendly deal to continue his development in the Motor City.
Duren, on the other hand, has remained adamant that he plans to only sign an offer that matches the value in his mind, after becoming supermax eligible courtesy of his breakout season.
The 22-year-old opened free agency, flirting with sign-and-trade scenarios that the Pistons quickly shut down.
Detroit has all the leverage in the world at the moment, but Duren won't budge, which is leading to a stare- off wondering which side will cave.
However, the latest report from NBA Insider Chris Haynes opened a can of worms that has been misconstrued on social media, and it feels necessary to set the record straight.
Chris Haynes never said Jalen Duren is fed up with Pistons
The Pistons' recent flurry of moves, offloading the contract of Isaiah Stewart and freeing up roughly $7 million in cap space by flipping Caris LeVert for a pair of smaller contracts, felt like it could be a precursor to Duren re-signing in Detroit.
However, no reports have indicated that a resolution is on the horizon, and based on Chris Haynes' latest report on NBA TV, the two sides remain far apart in contract talks.
One segment everyone is clinging to, though, is the hypothetical scenario in which Haynes suggested that IF Duren signed the qualifying offer, it would suggest he is fed up with the Pistons.
In response to former NBA star Isaiah Stewart's question about whether Duren would be the first All-NBA guy to take the qualifying offer, Haynes responded with his opinion.
"Now, IT, if he takes that offer, he REALLY wants out," Haynes said. "Like he is fed up, wants out, and believes himself that he doesn't want to be there."
The media ran wild with this quote, suggesting that Haynes reported that Duren was, in fact, fed up with the Pistons, and while that very well may be the case behind the scenes, Haynes didn't say that.
Haynes gave his opinion on Thomas' hypothetical scenario in which Duren has to take the qualifying offer, and until it gets to that point or a legitimate report comes out about his frustration, this "news" story has been overblown.
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