The deal fans have been waiting for finally happened Thursday night, as after a long offseason of contract negotiations, the Detroit Pistons and Jalen Duren reached an agreement.
According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, Duren has agreed to sign a five-year, $200 million fully guaranteed contract to return to the Pistons. Entering the offseason, Pistons President of Basketball Operations Trajan Langdon made it clear that the franchise’s goal was to build around Cade Cunningham, Ausar Thompson, and Jalen Duren.
With the recent multi-year extensions to both Duren and Thompson, the Pistons have reached that goal and now look to go all in to compete for their first NBA championship since 2004 in an improved Eastern Conference.
Jalen Duren 2025-26 NBA Season With Pistons
Duren is coming off a 2025-26 NBA season in which the Pistons finished with the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference and 60 wins, which received mixed feelings from fans. Duren’s regular-season performance was strong for the Pistons, as he was named an All-Star alongside Cade Cunningham and had his best year with the franchise, averaging 19.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, and 2.0 assists per game.
It was the postseason when everything fell apart for Duren, as his lackluster play played a major role in the Pistons falling short of representing the Eastern Conference in the NBA Finals, losing to the Cleveland Cavaliers in seven games in the second round. Instead, the Pistons would go on to watch the New York Knicks, a team they dominated during the regular season, beat Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs to win their first NBA championship in 53 years.
During the 14 postseason games that he played, which included two seven-game series against the Orlando Magic and Cleveland Cavaliers, Duren averaged 10.2 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game, a massive dip from his regular season stat line.
Expectations High For Jalen Duren
Now extended with the Pistons for five years, Duren looks to prove he’s worthy of the money Detroit is paying him by contributing to another top finish in the Eastern Conference during the regular season and a deeper postseason run.
While the preseason starts on Oct. 5 at Little Caesars Arena against the Phoenix Suns, the 2026-27 regular season begins in style for the Pistons, as they’ll host the Boston Celtics on Oct. 20 in the Motor City. With high expectations to take the next step, we’ll see if Duren can get off to a strong start for Detroit.
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