The Sacramento Kings may benefit from the latest news on the contract negotiations between the Detroit Pistons and center Jalen Duren.
The Sacramento Kings have not made a ton of moves this offseason, but they have been involved in some trade rumors to acquire Detroit Pistons center Jalen Duren.
On that note, the Kings may benefit from the latest update in the contract negotiations between Duren and the Pistons.
For some insight, breaking news writer at Bleacher Report Mike Chiari wrote that according to Sam Amick and Hunter Patterson of The Athletic, the Pistons have offered Duren a five-year, $200 million deal that has an element of a weight clause that would require Duren to weigh in monthly throughout the season.
It is important to note that league sources indicated to Amick and Patterson that the weight clause will function more like an incentive rather than something that would lessen the base value of the contract or void the contract.
Regardless, this is a very interesting move for the Pistons based on the fact that Duren appears to be in great shape and that his conditioing or weight have never been a major question.
Reportedly, the concerns about Duren's weight came as a surprise for Duren and his team, which could make this situation even more difficult for the Pistons to manage.
On the Pistons' side, based on the struggles Duren had in the playoffs last year, key decision-makers for Detroit would prefer Duren to play at a lighter weight, which is quite interesting.
The final two pieces of the situation to keep in mind are the fact that the Pistons do start training on October 20th and that Duren is considering accepting his one-year, $9.6 million qualifying offer which would enable him to be an unrestricted free agent next offseason.
With that said, it seems like the Kings are in a pretty good spot, because with the weight clause in the contract Duren and the Pistons do not appear to be on the same page which means that him signing a contract extension in Detroit is not very likely and that could very well lead him to being a free agent next offseason.
The reason that is good for the Kings is due to the fact that Sacramento will not have to pay guard Zach LaVine as he is on his player option, and forward DeAndre Hunter will be off the books as well, which will open up a lot more cap space.
Additionally, Duren playing out the season in Detroit also gives the Kings time to find a trade partner for center Domantas Sabonis to clear his money off the books so this team can really buy into getting younger and have significantly more cap space than they have now.
Based on what has happened this offseason, it is believed that there is mutual interest between the Kings and Duren, and that if the opportunity presented itself, Sacramento would acquire Duren and sign him to the max contract he is seeking.
With that said, if Duren does sign the qualifying offer and becomes a free agent next offseason, it seems that the Kings could be in a great position to sign Duren, while letting LaVine and Hunter walk in free agency and trade away Sabonis, which could help general manager Scott Perry focus on adding young talent rather how to manage the contracts of veterans who do not fit the timeline.
