It's bizarre that Jalen Duren didn't immediately agree to re-sign with the Detroit Pistons when they offered him a five-year, $200 million deal. It's in the range he's been looking for, but somehow, it still wasn't enough. While it's one of the wildest twists in his ongoing restricted free agency saga, his apparent eagerness to play for the Kings takes the cake.
Sacramento isn't a top destination for NBA star talent. It's not even a top destination for any talent, period. The Kings' biggest success in over twenty years came in 2022-23, when they finished third in the West and clinched a playoff berth, but the Warriors beat them in seven games in the first round.
Since then, Sacramento has steadily fallen back down the rankings and is fresh off a 22-60 season, tied with Utah for the worst record in the conference. As a result, the Kings selected Darius Acuff Jr. with the No. 7 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, and while his arrival has fans feeling at least a little hopeful about the future, he can't be expected to pull them out of the hole they're in.
For whatever reason, though, Sacramento seems to be a top-tier destination for Duren. You could point to money as the reason, but even if he plays out the season on his $9.6 million qualifying offer and signs a max with the Kings as an unrestricted free agent, it'd still come in slightly less than the Pistons' $200 million offer.
It's baffling.
Is Duren trying to force himself to Sacramento?
Either that, or he's just that desperate to get out of Detroit.
Duren met with Sacramento at the start of free agency, and, as Sam Amick and Hunter Patterson of The Athletic reported earlier this month, the Kings "still have very strong interest" in the center and could create the space to sign him to a max-level deal next summer (subscription required).
If Duren plays out the season on his qualifying offer and stays healthy, other teams would be ready to throw money at him, so it's not like it'd be Sacramento-or-nowhere. But it already feels like the Kings have an upper hand, for whatever reason, and maybe he'll find his way there sooner than expected.
He has a relationship with GM Scott Perry, dating back to when the Knicks traded for him on draft night in 2022, but is that really enough to make him willingly join one of the worst organizations in the league, if not the worst?
You've heard the saying that the grass isn't always greener on the other side, but in this case, Duren shouldn't need to go to the other side (Sacramento) to realize that.
Add us as a preferred source on Google