With players such as Peyton Watson and DeMar DeRozan now off the market, Detroit Pistons star Jalen Duren is the last remaining big-name free agent. Unfortunately for Pistons fans, the situation between him and Detroit appears to be deteriorating fast.
According to ESPN's Tim McMahon, the situation between Duren and the Pistons is turning nasty.
That's unsurprising considering that he has been languishing as a restricted free agent for going on two months now.
This was after he made both the All-Star team and all-NBA in his age-22 season. That's a rarity and usually results in big money.
ESPN delivers a bleak update for Jalen Duren’s future with Pistons
Unfortunately for Duren, his playoff flameout resulted in his value plummeting. Now, instead of receiving a 5-year, $287 million max contract, he could get considerably less.
The Pistons are apparently hoping to sign him for between $30 million and $35 million annually. That is far less than what he is hoping to receive in restricted free agency.
With the two sides far apart on a deal, it seems increasingly likely that he will sign the qualifying offer of $9.6 million. That qualifying offer means that he would be returning to the Pistons on a one-year deal and become an unrestricted free agent after next season. That would make him a 23-year-old free agent who can choose his next team.
The Pistons' worst-case Jalen Duren scenario may soon be realized
That would be the worst-case scenario for Detroit. After all, Duren might still harbor hard feelings if he returns on a qualifying offer. Worse yet, with him on a one-year deal, he'd be much harder to trade, with him essentially having veto rights.
The end result could be that the Pistons lose him for nothing. Still, it's hard to blame them for playing hard ball with Duren. After all, giving him the max would mean they'd have to pay him $57.5 million on average over the next five years.
That would be a far cry from what they are offering him, which is at least $22 million less per season. The problem for Duren is that while he clearly wants more than what Detroit is offering, no team has been willing to make him an offer.
Barring the Pistons and Duren meeting somewhere in the middle, he seems likely to take the qualifying offer. Either way, it seems likely that the two sides are headed towards an ugly ending.
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