The NBA just took $50 million out of Jalen Duren's pocket

The NBA ruled in favor of Cade Cunningham and Luka Doncic in their appeals for awards eligibility, which means both guys are back in the running for All-NBA and MVP. 

Ironically, Cade’s inclusion on the team could push off his teammate Jalen Duren, who has been getting buzz for third and even second team honors. It’s still possible Duren will make it, but there are likely two fewer spots, as Cunningham and Doncic are all but certain to be on the rosters.

Duren will be happy for his teammate and isn’t going to care...until he looks in his wallet. 

Jalen Duren might have just lost a bag 

If Duren makes the All-NBA team, he’ll be eligible for substantially more money in his next contract. If he doesn’t make it, the Pistons will avoid the dreaded designated rookie max and potentially save five percent. That doesn’t seem like much, but every cent counts in the new CBA, so the Pistons are probably secretly hoping he gets left off.

It’s good news for the Pistons’ cap sheet if he doesn’t make it, and bad news for Duren, who can use an All-NBA selection to get himself near $50 million a year.  

JD may have to get Cade to buy him a car or something. These aren’t bad problems to have, and I am sure the two teammates will be happy for each other either way. But not everyone is happy about the ruling.

Not everyone is happy about the NBA’s decision on Cade Cunningham and Luka Doncic 

The NBA has created a problem for itself with this 65-game rule, which I do not like at all. Voters are smart enough to know if a player did enough to warrant being on the team, and the difference between playing 64 games and playing 41.  Other than a couple of occasions, most players who were on the team were already meeting these thresholds.

Also, both Cade and Luka played significantly more total minutes than some of the guys who played more games, so which is more valuable?

Some people don’t agree, and I can see their point, as it’s still a fair number of games to miss. The players also agreed to these rules, so I can understand why some might wonder why exceptions are being made, especially when they weren’t for other players like Anthony Edwards. 

Who gets to decide which injuries and circumstances are extenuating? How exactly was that determined and by what measure? 

I honestly don’t care much about All-NBA teams, so I can certainly see both sides of the debate here, and like I said, the players never had to agree to these rules.  

It’s something that I am certain the NBA will be revisiting at some point soon, as it seems to have had some unintended, yet totally predictable consequences. 

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