Whatever chance the Detroit Pistons had to sign Jalen Duren to a team-friendly deal is long gone, as the young center has made a considerable leap this season and is going to get paid next summer.
According to insider Jake Fisher, Duren may now be looking for upwards of $40 million a season after he has improved on both ends of the floor.
He’s already one of the frontrunners for the Most Improved Player award and has added the type of nuance to his offensive game that has people recalibrating his potential.
Jalen Duren looking more like Chris Webber than Andre Drummond
People may choose to forget this now, but after last season there was real debate about whether Duren was the future at center for the Pistons.
He had already proven himself to be an athletic freak and great rebounder, but everything else positive came in flashes, including his defense and his ability to do things on offense other than dunk.
Some openly wondered if the Pistons had another Andre Drummond on their hands, a talented rebounder and rim runner, but not much else.
Instead, Duren has more closely resembled Michigan legend Chris Webber, as he is taking it to the rack off the bounce, has been knocking down the occasional jumper (and looks comfortable doing it) and has improved his passing, especially out of the short roll.
Duren is now looking like the kind of skilled big that you need in the modern game, where centers have to be able to do more than just stand in the middle.
Duren is averaging seven more points per game than he did last season, is having a career year as a rebounder and has improved as a rim protector. He’s been a big part of the Pistons’ defensive excellence and is forming possibly the best pick-and-roll duo in the league with Cade Cunningham.
Of course, all of that is going to cost the Pistons, who declined to extend Duren last summer, a decision they are regretting right now, as he’s likely to get even more than the $30 million a season he was rumored to want last offseason.
The Pistons said, “show me and we’ll pay you,” and Duren got the message, as he put in the work this summer on his body and his game and has come back looking like one of the top centers in the Eastern Conference and a guy who might make his first All-Star team.
All of that is going to add up to a big payday for Duren, likely somewhere in the range of what Alperen Sengun got from the Rockets. This wasn’t completely expected, as Duren didn’t read like a max guy for the first years of his career, but he looks like one now, so the Pistons will have to change their team-building strategy to include a big contract for Duren.
This is one of many reasons you aren’t likely to see Detroit chasing big names like Anthony Davis at the trade deadline, as they are going to have to pay Duren and then Ausar Thompson after him.
It’s not what some fans want to hear, but the good news is Detroit may have its second star and didn’t have to trade half the roster to get him.