The Lu Dort trade was a salary dump. The Oklahoma City Thunder have been pressed up against the second apron all summer, and this was the final move they needed to make to get under it. It’s the exact situation the Detroit Pistons are hoping to avoid (or put off as long as possible) moving forward. It’s why they don’t want to overpay Jalen Duren.
Teams don’t want to stay in the second apron. In the case of the Thunder, they don’t want to be in at all (for now). They have three guys about to be making max money in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, and Chet Holmgren. The Pistons already have Cade Cunningham, and paying Duren a max would put them in a tough spot.
They don’t want to have to sell off quality players li ethe Thunder did with Dort.
Lu Dort is type of trade Pistons are trying to avoid with Jalen Duren saga
As soon as the NBA introduced the second apron, it was destined to destroy teams. That’s exactly what happened with this Dort trade: The Thunder wanted to shed salary.
OKC sent Dort to the Atlanta Hawks, who also received Ryan Nembhard from the Dallas Mavericks in the three-team trade. Zaccharie Risacher got sent to the Mavericks, and the Thunder got three second-round picks back in the deal.
But most importantly, the Thunder got cap relief. They shed Dort’s money. And as a result, they will now be under the second apron heading into next season.
The Pistons have a bunch of talented players on the roster. They are inevitably going to have to dela with the second apron in one way or another. But overpaying Duren would make the situation worse.
That’s why things have been dragged out this summer. Money is as important as ever in the NBA, and if the Pistons give Duren a massive contract that he may not be worth, they could be in a rough position regarding the first and second aprons.
Duren is still sitting in restricted free agency. He and the Pistons have yet to come to an agreement on a deal. He wants to get paid, but the Pistons don’t want to put themselves in a bad position financially.
If they overpay Duren, they could have to shed salary sooner rather than later, much like the Thunder just had to do with the Dort trade (and the Aaron Wiggins and Isaiah Joe trades).
Overpaying Duren would put the Pistons in a tough spot, just like the one OKC is trying to trade its way out of.
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