The Pistons may be running out of time to settle the Jalen Duren situation, and that’s exactly why they need a backup plan ready if he follows through on his qualifying-offer threat.
There’s still a chance this all blows over. But with training camp a little more than two weeks away, Detroit can’t afford to sit around and hope for the best. If Duren really does take the qualifying offer, the team has to be ready to react fast.
One path would be to move him right away. That would come with its own headache, but the alternative is worse: starting the season with an unhappy center on an expiring deal, knowing he’s not part of the long-term picture. That kind of situation can spill into everything, from locker room dynamics to what happens on the floor.
The appeal of having a starting center locked in at less than $10 million next season is obvious. But so is the danger. If Duren is on an expiring contract and waiting to be dealt, the Pistons would be staring at a tense, awkward setup from day one.
The other option is to hold off and wait until the trade deadline. That would buy time, but it would also leave Detroit stuck with the same problems for months. Duren would still be there, still unhappy, and still at risk of injury or some other setback before the team could move him.
And if the Pistons go that route, they wouldn’t be in a strong negotiating position. Other teams would know Detroit wants to trade him before losing him for nothing, which would put the Pistons in a difficult spot.
However this ends, the Pistons need to be prepared. If Duren wants to turn this into a hardball situation, Detroit has choices - but none of them are clean.
In Other News...
Jalen Duren's Pistons Standoff Just Became Impossible To Ignore
Mid-September is an uncomfortable place for a negotiation to be sitting, especially when it involves a 22-year-old who made both the All-Star and All-NBA teams last season. Jalen Duren remains without a new deal from Detroit, and the Pistons have been firm enough to believe they have already put forward a fair offer based on what they see as his current market value.
The hold-up has become notable because Duren is not just any restricted free agent lingering on the board. He is the most decorated player to still be unsigned this late, and the sides do not appear to be operating from the same place on what his resume should be worth. Detroit has plenty of reason to admire the ceiling, but enough questions around his playoff performance and the context of those honors to keep this from moving like a straightforward payday. [Read more 🡒]
Pistons May Need To Settle One Ausar Thompson Question Early
The Pistons are looking at Ausar Thompsons next contract with a little more urgency than usual, and for good reason. Detroit would like to get an early extension done if it can, both to reward one of its core young pieces and to avoid letting the situation drift into the kind of restricted free agency mess that can hang over a roster for months.
Thompson still has the kind of appeal that could draw attention around the league, especially with several teams expected to have cap space next summer. But that market can shrink fast, and once it does, the player loses a lot of leverage. For Detroit, the question is whether it makes sense to move now and settle the framework early, or risk letting the process stretch into a tougher negotiation later. [Read more 🡒]
Pistons Are Hearing The Same Doubts Again And Cade Changes It
The Pistons did not make the kind of splashy offseason moves that tend to quiet the national skeptics, and that has put them right back in the familiar spot of having to answer questions before the season even starts. Bleacher Report was among the outlets pointing to Detroit as a team that may have taken a step back, a familiar refrain for a franchise trying to turn continuity into momentum and expectations into something more durable.
Cade Cunningham is the reason the conversation around Detroit never stays entirely pessimistic for long. The East has a wide range of plausible outcomes behind the top tier, with several rosters still carrying obvious uncertainty, and that leaves room for the Pistons to press their case as a playoff team rather than another club lumped into the crowded middle. If Detroit is going to change the tone around it, Cunningham is still the player who makes that possible. [Read more 🡒]