With 12 games left in the regular season, the Detroit Pistons are positioned atop the Eastern Conference for the fourth consecutive month at 51-19, but All-Star point guard Cade Cunningham’s recent collapsed lung diagnosis has sparked a reasonable cause for concern. 

Despite Cunningham’s multi-week absence, the Pistons have chugged along with three consecutive wins after last night’s 115-101 victory over the Golden State Warriors, so the team is aiming to remain steady without their star player. But in doing so, the Pistons have shifted even more responsibility onto fourth-year center Jalen Duren’s plate, which is asking a lot from a player who’s already increased his scoring by 7.4 points per game this season.

“Obviously, it’s tough Deuce going down, so everybody [is] just sticking together,” Duren said after the Pistons’ win last night. “Next man up mentality, trying to put together some wins.”

So, how has JD responded to the added volume? 

On Tuesday, March 17, the first-time All-Star set a new career-high with 36 points against the Washington Wizards after Cunningham left the game with his injury, which the Pistons labeled back spasms at the time. So, Duren quickly shifted into another gear and went 13-for-17 from the field while knocking down 10 free throws and grabbing 11 rebounds to push the Pistons to a 13-point win on the road. 

“I think even when Deuce was playing, we try to make an emphasis of keeping the ball hot, trying to get a couple passes on the possession, letting everybody touch the ball, and I think it’s been good for us,” Duren said. “I think it’s been good for our offense, getting a lot of movement, a lot of cutting. The results have been good for us.”

In the meantime with Cunningham sidelined, Duren is doing his best to keep the Pistons in first place in the East with a dozen games remaining and a four-game cushion over the Boston Celtics in second place. Detroit has a fairly difficult schedule down the stretch with contests against the Los Angeles Lakers, Atlanta Hawks, Oklahoma City Thunder, Minnesota Timberwolves (twice) and Toronto Raptors, so the Pistons won’t be allowed to coast into the playoffs by any means. 

Since the Pistons were unable to reach an agreement on a rookie extension with Duren at the deadline on Oct. 20 earlier this season, JD is going to enter the offseason as a restricted free agent once Detroit extends the big man a qualifying offer. But given that relative inevitability, Duren is going to command a hefty raise during the summer given the growth he’s shown during the 2025-26 campaign. 

At the moment, Duren is averaging 19.2 points and 10.5 rebounds per game, and he’s looked particularly dangerous since returning from the All-Star Break. But all season long, Duren has shown improvement as a ball handler, and he’s frequently gone coast-to-coast with the rock during games this season. As a face-up threat from the elbow, Duren has the footwork and quickness to get to the bucket, and he’s even shot 6% better from the charity stripe this year, which is important given he shoots 5.9 foul shots per game. 

Though Duren has drawn criticism for his defensive contributions at times, the Pistons’ anchor down low is growing into a top five center in the NBA, and he’s linearly focused on continuing to improve. And along those lines, Duren is currently a frontrunner to win the NBA's Most Improved Player Award when the season wraps up. 

“This is months and months and years of work that I’ve been putting in, and now the world is starting to see,” Duren said. “So, that confidence is there. I don’t feel like it’s really any bigs that can stay in front of me in the league when I’m playing at the level that I’m supposed to be playing at.”

What this means is that the Pistons will ultimately have to pay more this offseason than they likely would have several months earlier to keep Duren in Motown, but Detroit also has a much more clear picture of what levels JD can reach as well. 

Duren and the Pistons will be back in action on Monday, March 23 at 7 pm with a home game against the Los Angeles Lakers on the docket. 

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