The NBA playoffs are less than a month away, and the Detroit Pistons are hoping to have star Cade Cunningham back before the postseason. Cunningham is out indefinitely with a collapsed lung.
That could cost him the rest of the regular season and potentially some of the first round of the playoffs. That also eliminates him from making All-NBA, though it could open the door for another Piston.
All-Star Jalen Duren is their second-best player and one of the best young centers in the NBA. While he wouldn’t normally be in All-NBA contention, several high-profile stars have all been ruled out from receiving that honor.
Were that to happen, that would be a potential disaster for the Pistons.
Detroit Pistons center Jalen Duren isn’t worth a super max contract
If Duren were to make All-NBA, he’d be eligible for a $288 million extension this summer. While he may not receive that, even if he were to qualify, it would increase his leverage in contract negotiations.
Ironically, the Pistons front office likely is hoping that Duren doesn’t make All-NBA. It’s one thing to pay Cunningham $269 million, but it’s entirely another thing to pay Duren nearly $300 million.
While he’s a great young center, there’s no way that he is worth that amount. Don’t get me wrong, Duren is having a strong season, averaging a terrific 19.2 points on an eye-popping 67.6 true shooting percentage, to go along with 10.5 rebounds.
The Pistons can’t afford two max contracts
He’s just 22 years old, making him surprisingly young for a four-year player. All that is to say that he still has plenty of potential but perhaps not supermax potential.
Remember, Cunningham will make $53.8 on average over his max contract, while Duren would make $57.6 on average on a potential max deal.
In today’s NBA, it’s not feasible to pay your two best players $111.4 million when only one of them is worth an actual supermax contract.
Therefore, finding common ground on a reasonable 5-year deal would be for the best, especially for the Pistons. They can’t afford to bring back Duren for anywhere close to the max and should be hoping he doesn’t make All-NBA.