All-NBA 3rd Team center Jalen Duren has a particularly rough postseason performance, leading to doubts about his ability to command a max contract. Could Detroit's indecision create a perfect opportunity for the Chicago Bulls to strike?
The Chicago Bulls will have nearly $60 million in salary cap space this offseason if they renounce all of their free agents, a likely move considering the fluidity of the roster under a new front office regime.
Chicago is unlikely to chase veteran talent to speed up their team building process, but if there is a chance to snag a young talent coming off of a great season, you would have to think Bryson Graham and Co. would strike. That is where Detroit Pistons center Jalen Duren comes into the picture. According to Sam Amick, Duren and the Pistons are reportedly far away in their current contract talks, having what can was described as a "huge gap."
The 22-year old Duren is coming off an impressive All-NBA 3rd team season, and was the youngest player to make an All-NBA team this year. He averaged 19.5 PPG, 10.5 RPG, 2.0 APG, and a combined 1.6 steals + blocks per game for the Pistons, would finished as the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference.
Duren would clearly be the best player on the Bulls, and that alone makes the concept of "overpaying" him impossible in my eyes.
Duren is currently getting a lot of--somewhat deserved--negative PR as a result of his lackluster postseason performance. Duren had the fourth-largest drop in PPG from the regular season to the postseason for an All-Star player. He isn't a player who should necessarily to be depended on to be a top scorer, but his performance was abysmal at a time when Detroit badly needed someone to aid 1st Team All-NBA guard Cade Cunningham.
In Chicago, the main concerns with Duren are very much muted. Whether or not the new Bulls head coach looks at Duren as a primary scorer on offense, he will have the opportunity to grow his game on a team that certainly doesn't have championship aspirations.
Once we get past the fact that there will be no pressure in Chicago, the real reason Duren would be ideal is that his strengths are Chicago's weaknesses. He's a strong and physical big man who dominates on the offensive glass. And the most important thing Duren did this past season was simply show that he can play winning basketball on both sides of the ball.
He's somewhat newfound aggressiveness as a scorer saw the Pistons offense perform 6.4 PPP (points per possession) better when he was on the floor. Duren's screening, finishing (73% FG % at the rim per Cleaning The Glass), and surprising playmaking ability (2.0 assists per game) make him an interesting secondary hub for an offense.
Duren is not an big time defensive playmaker, but Detroit's defense was still better when he was on the floor. He is quick enough to slide his feet when switched onto smaller players, and can capably use his broad shoulders to carve out space to inhale defensive rebounds to end possessions.
Bulls' Executive VP of Basketball Ops Bryson Graham has stated that he wants SLAP players--Size, Length, Athleticism, and Physicality--and Duren certainly fits that mold.
While it may feel that throwing a massive contract offer at Duren is a Nikola Vucevic-to-Chicago-esque move, the age (22), current production (All-NBA 3rd Team) and fact that you are simultaneously weakening a division rival, makes a big Duren offer sheet a worthwhile gamble for the new-look Chicago Bulls front office.
