Jalen Duren’s contract standoff has dragged the Pistons into an awkward spot, and with Monday’s media day passing without him in attendance, the situation looks no closer to a clean ending. Trajan Langdon said he hadn’t spoken with the center all summer, and with Thursday’s qualifying offer deadline looming, the odds of a quick resolution appear to be shrinking fast.
That’s why Anthony Davis has entered the conversation.
Marc J. Spears said on ESPN that the Wizards are among the teams interested in a Duren sign-and-trade, alongside the Kings, Bucks and Hawks.
Spears also noted that the Pistons have been unwilling to get into those talks. But as the season opens and the relationship between Duren and the organization looks increasingly fragile, Detroit may have to at least consider whether moving him now makes more sense than letting this drag on.
The alternative is letting Duren play the season on his $9.6 million qualifying offer, which would still leave the Pistons able to trade him later, just not for a player with Davis’ kind of profile. That matters even if the idea sounds risky on the surface.
Davis is 33 and has played only 29 combined games since the Lakers traded him to the Mavericks, so the health concerns are obvious. Still, one season of Davis may be more appealing than another round of uncertainty with a player who already seems halfway out the door.
Davis’ situation in Washington has its own layer of uncertainty. He became eligible for an extension with his new team this summer, but the Wizards chose to wait on any new deal until the season starts. ESPN’s Shams Charania reported that both sides want to see how “the first 20 or so games” go.
At Washington’s media day on Monday, Davis said he wants to “go through the season” to see what he can “do at a high level” before talking extension.
That makes him a possible trade candidate, especially if Washington decides it would rather not risk him declining his $62.8 million player option for 2027-28 next summer and reaching unrestricted free agency. Turning Davis into a 22-year-old Duren would fit Washington’s timeline, though the Wizards may also prefer to keep Alex Sarr as their starting center.
For Detroit, the money and the injury risk would be a serious lift. Davis is making $58.5 million this season, and any deal would almost certainly require more than a simple one-for-one swap, with the Pistons ideally adding another ball-handler as part of the return.
Depending on what Washington would be willing to take back for Duren, it could take moving more than Davis and another piece. The question of whether the Wizards would even do $200 million hangs over the whole thing.
The health issue is the biggest red flag, and it’s impossible to ignore. Davis has dealt with injuries over the last season and a half, even if he did play 76 games in 2024-25.
He is healthy right now, though, and that gives Detroit something to weigh against the constant fear of another setback. There’s also the cost: over $120 million this season and next if his player option is counted, before any extension even enters the picture.
That kind of commitment is steep, and it’s the sort of move that has plenty of downside. But Detroit is also staring at the possibility that Duren simply takes his qualifying offer, and that’s a mess of its own.
The Pistons are coming off a 60-win season and a run to the semifinals, where they lost to the Cavaliers in seven games. Instead of building on that, they look set for a step back this offseason, even more than some of the other teams in the East. They’ve been looking for a co-star for Cade Cunningham, and while John Collins and Isaiah Joe were added for scoring help, Cunningham may still have to shoulder most of the load.
Davis would change that. In his last full season, he averaged 25.7 points, and he would pull defensive attention away from Cunningham while also giving Detroit a real anchor on the back line. He remains one of the league’s best rim protectors and disruptors.
There’s also a stylistic argument the Pistons could point to if they wanted to sell themselves on the fit. Davis’ time with LeBron in Los Angeles offers a template of sorts, with Cunningham cast as the oversized six-foot-six creator who can run the offense, bend defenses and free up chances for Davis.
For now, though, Langdon’s comments at media day suggest Detroit still expects Duren to be on the roster. He said Duren will be a Detroit Piston, and the front office appears comfortable with its latest offer. That leaves the center with the choice.
Detroit has stayed committed to keeping him, at least for one more season, and while it would be hard to imagine him passing on $200 million, that possibility is still hanging there. A trade for Davis would let the Pistons avoid getting to that point, assuming Washington is truly interested and Duren’s camp isn’t just using the Wizards as leverage.
Even then, it wouldn’t come without risk. Davis could miss time and leave Detroit stuck with a major contract and a shaky rotation. But the other path is a Duren situation that already feels disconnected and unresolved.
That’s the bind. The Pistons may not like the idea of pivoting to Davis, but with the season about to begin and Duren’s future still hanging in the air, it might be the cleaner escape hatch from a problem that’s only getting harder to manage.
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