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Jalen Duren of the Detroit Pistons is having a breakout campaign.

The Los Angeles Lakers view Jalen Duren as one of the biggest names on the market that they hope to acquire this offseason. Duren is coming off a breakout season with the Detroit Pistons and has a chance to sign a massive contract this summer. Detroit currently plans to keep Duren by matching any offer, but multiple factors may make it a harder decision. The Lakers have a stronger chance than most expect with the free agent center.

Lake Show Life reported that the Pistons playoff results could help the Lakers:

“If the Pistons end up having second thoughts about giving Duren a huge deal, that would open possibilities back up for a Lakers front office monitoring the situation. This is precisely why the Lakers have reason to root against the Pistons — and for the Orlando Magic — in this ongoing first-round series that is currently locked at 1-1 heading to Orlando.

A Luka-Reaves-LeBron-Duren core would set the Lakers up nicely for contention in 2026-27. Unfortunately, the Pistons are still likely to re-invest in Duren this summer. Keep an eye on the Magic series, though. Anything can happen.”

The belief here is that Detroit suffering a first-round elimination could make them rethink their future and not hand out a massive contract. Duren’s market could be too high for the Pistons’ comfort level to give him a blank check.

Why Detroit Would Avoid Paying Jalen Duren

Detroit had a dream season as the wire to wire one seed in the Eastern Conference, but they are now expected to contend in the postseason. A shocking Game 1 loss to the Orlando Magic put more pressure on them to win this series.

Duren also qualifies for the All-NBA team and could be owed a lot more money in incentives via his next extension for hitting that feat. An early elimination in the first or second round could see the Pistons refusing to pay Duren max contract money with the bonuses.

Various teams have made mistakes like this, as seen with Christian Braun and Jakob Poeltl hurting their teams on massive contracts right now. The Lakers only have a chance at Duren if Detroit backs out of paying the young center his desired contract.

Lakers Need Sign & Trade To Add Jalen Duren

The Lakers would have to be willing to overpay Duren to steal him from another team, but a sign and trade is likely required to make the money work. Detroit would have to settle for whichever role players the Lakers offer.

Cap space is on the Lakers’ side this summer, but they also must give new deals to Austin Reaves and LeBron James to retain them. James is expected to take a pay cut wherever he signs, and Reaves could do the same to help the team bring in another star.

Both things must happen, and the Lakers must find some tradable contracts that would appease the Pistons. General Manager Rob Pelinka will have to explore every option, but he mostly needs Detroit to lose confidence in Duren being a top two player on a title contender.