Two months ago, the Detroit Pistons would've looked foolish by letting Jalen Duren walk away in free agency. Now, after watching him struggle so much in the playoffs, J.B. Bickerstaff and company may not feel the same way.
Duren rose to prominence as one of the league's most improved players this season. He started 70 games and earned his first All-Star nod by averaging a career-high 19.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, and 2.0 assists per game on 65 percent from the floor.
He was entering a contract year, and with a potential five-year extension that might be worth between roughly $239 million and $287 million, depending on this year's accolades, he was looking at a massive payday. That may no longer be the case.
The Pistons may not want to break the bank for Duren this summer
Duren can make a legitimate case for the All-NBA third team, thus becoming eligible to earn nearly $50 million a year. He'll be a restricted free agent, and as such, the Pistons will have the right to match any offer he gets in free agency.
If his postseason struggles scare other teams away, the Pistons might be able to get him at a discount. Otherwise, they may have no choice but to thank him for his services, as he's exactly the opposite type of guy anyone would want on the court when it matters the most.
Despite his obvious size and strength advantage over every big man he's faced in the playoffs, Duren has only scored more than 12 points once in 11 postseason games, and he has yet to score more than 15 points. He also led the league with a 68.8 True Shooting percentage, and that number has dropped all the way to 54.4% in the postseason.
Cade Cunningham, Tobias Harris, and Duncan Robinson are all proving to be playoff risers, putting the team on their shoulders to honor their status as the No. 1 seed. Duren, on the other hand, looks erratic, hasn't been as aggressive on either side of the glass, and has shied away from using his physicality to impose his presence below the rim.
While that narrative of the traditional big man being a dying breed in today's NBA is far from accurate, spending nearly $50 million a year on a center who's not a rim protector, can't create his own shot, and doesn't step up when his team needs him the most might not be the wisest asset management for this rising Pistons team.
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