All throughout the Jalen Duren saga with the Detroit Pistons, the Sacramento Kings have stood as a team that is more than just interested in adding the All-Star big man
As a team fully in the throes of a full-scale rebuild, the Sacramento Kings are looking to see what their future as a franchise will resemble, and they have their eye on Detroit Pistons center Jalen Duren. Throughout the offseason, the Kings have remained as a team waiting in the wings to snag Duren, a restricted free agent, if the right opportunity presented itself.
Based on their current roster construction, the Kings have an aging star big man in Domantas Sabonis that they’d like to recoup some value from before his deal runs out, which makes now a logical time to pursue Duren for the pivot. The Kings just drafted Darius Acuff Jr. in the first round this summer, so the team would have a budding young potential star to pair with JD in light of a potential move.
From that side of the equation, the Kings are well within their rights to pursue Duren as a younger, more athletic upgrade at the five if he’s available, but the Pistons seem unwilling to trade the All-Star center at the moment. Last season, Duren averaged nearly 20 points and 11 rebounds per game before running into a postseason wall, so Detroit would prefer to hold onto that young talent if at all possible.
For the Western Conference squad, adding Duren would give them a chance at a full-scale rebuild with a two-man core of Duren and Acuff that they could use to feature as centerpieces. By all accounts, if the Kings are not able to procure Duren from Detroit this offseason, they’d still be interested when the Trade Deadline comes around. If Duren signs his qualifying offer before the deadline on Oct. 1, then Sacramento would still have a desire to add the 22-year old double-double machine next offseason when he’d become an unrestricted free agent.
Now, why are the Kings so convinced that Duren will be the remedy to their Western Conference woes? Sacramento General Manager Scott Perry has kept an eye on Duren’s development in Motown over the last several years since he was heavily involved in scouting JD during the pre-draft process back in 2022.
“Scott Perry has a relationship with Jalen Duren dating to when he was trying to get the Knicks to draft him, which they did but they traded him to the Pistons,” ESPN NBA analyst Marc Spears said. “Scott Perry also has NFL ties from his father. Duren’s agent is an NFL agent, so he has a connection with him, and Duren likes Scott Perry a lot. He likes Sacramento a lot.”
Spears reiterated a popular talking point that Duren feels a bit disrespected by the Pistons that he’s remained unsigned for this long. Coming off an All-Star campaign, Duren was prepared to cash in on a max or near-max contract this summer, but the Pistons obviously had other ideas after his struggles during the playoffs. If the Pistons were to offer Duren 25% of the cap at right around $42 million per season, then the big man could become tied for the seventh-highest paid center in the NBA next season, but it looks as if the number will be considerably lower than that if Duren agrees to a long-term deal in the next couple weeks.
Once the Pistons sort out their negotiations with Duren, then the team is expected to reach an agreement with Ausar Thompson on a rookie scale extension. The deadline for Detroit in that regard will be Oct. 20, which is the first day of the regular season, so Detroit has a bit more time to sign AT.
