For now, the Pistons have seemingly committed to Jalen Duren for the long term with a 5-year/$200 million contract. Duren chose to take on the pressure of a long offseason for the sake of getting a ton of money and long-term security. But Duren could still find himself as a trade candidate during his contract if he doesn’t live up to it.
Duren is only safe for one season
Since Duren held out so long before signing his extension, he can’t be traded this season. Per NBA rules, a player can’t be traded within 6 seasons of signing an extension, so Duren’s untradable period will stretch beyond the next trade deadline.
However, Duren could find himself on the trade block next offseason if he doesn’t make the improvements that Detroit is expecting. With the fanbase and potentially also the front office frustrated by his holdout this summer, Duren will be scrutinized to the highest extent over the next year.
The Pistons could have plenty of trade options for Duren
All throughout the offseason, we heard about how other teams were interested in doing a sign-and-trade for Duren, but the Pistons refused to engage. Supposedly those suitors were even willing to extend offers comparable to or even better than what the Pistons gave Duren. Those same teams should also be interested in Duren’s services next year under his contract, unless this next season is an absolute disaster.
During Duren’s offseason negotiations this summer, the Pistons had a very complex path to trading Duren because of the NBA’s financial rules. If the Pistons traded him away on a $40 million contract, they could only receive $20 million in return without adding more against their salary cap figure.
Hopefully Duren doesn’t have a massive letdown after signing his contract extension. But even with another All-Star campaign, the Pistons might still want to deal him next year if they decide his fit alongside Cade Cunningham and Ausar Thompson won't be good enough to compete for a title.
Duren famously had a historic downturn in last season's playoffs after his first All-Star season. But that could be excused by his youth and his first postseason with star expectations. If it happens again, or even if Duren plays better and the Pistons still lose earlier than desired next year, he could easily find himself getting shopped around the league.
His contract isn't big enough to be untradable for the right team. And rebuilding squads might be willing to overlook Duren's fit issues on the Pistons if they can surround him with more shooting. The pieces are all there for Duren to become a trade chip sooner than he expects if he doesn't help the Pistons make a deep playoff run this season.
Add us as a preferred source on Google