Pistons and Duren remain apart on extension; he earned $6.5M last season

2026-10-01

Jalen Duren and the Detroit Pistons remain in a standoff over a contract extension as training camp opens across the NBA.

Duren, the starting center, appeared in 70 of the team's 82 games last season. Without an extension, he would reach restricted free agency, where Detroit would hold the right to match any offer.

In 2025-26, Duren was paid like the 215th player in the league and produced like the 3rd, per WAGE, a WAGE Score of 97 in the Steal! tier.

His $6.5M salary covered 3% of the payroll and bought 18% of the team's production. An extension would have to approach a top-tier salary before his pay caught up with last season's production.