- 5 weeks ago
Hear the latest on the Jalen Duren and Detroit Pistons contract situation.
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00:00This is from Tim McManaman.
00:01This is about the situation.
00:03You can take it or leave it.
00:04Do whatever you want with it.
00:05But the saga continues.
00:06It's August 21st.
00:08And at least from this ESPN insider,
00:12this does not sound like it's going to be easy or end well.
00:17David, go ahead.
01:02So I want to give you first crack at it.
01:05I've made my opinion pretty well known on this,
01:07and I've been consistent about it.
01:08I've been given no reason to change.
01:10But where are you at with this, that report, the process,
01:15and really where you stand with Langdon and Duren?
01:18Because this is nasty.
01:20I genuinely am not trying to do the like I told you so thing.
01:25But I brought this up really before it started picking up
01:29traction this summer because when you, we could see,
01:33you could read the tea leaves with this situation where Duren wants the max.
01:39Nobody, besides he and his camp, think he is worth that.
01:43And then when the, when right at the end of the, the, the major part of the off season,
01:48where all the moves were made, the Pistons made some of their trades.
01:51They didn't get the big move that we were talking about.
01:53They had all this cap space and there was nobody left to go get even with that cap space
01:59in the free agent market.
02:00And we learned that Duren, because the Kings made their move, the Lakers made their move.
02:05Those were the two teams he was looking at.
02:07The Kings report honestly sounded kind of fake.
02:10And there was no one that was going to sign and trade for him.
02:13The Pistons said they weren't going to do it.
02:15It was like, where do you go from here?
02:17Okay.
02:18There was the mistake by the Pistons.
02:20You never close doors.
02:22You had to keep your options open.
02:24It has been no secret.
02:26Duren has been disillusioned with his value since before last season.
02:31They were trying to negotiate a deal last season.
02:34He wanted north of 30.
02:36They didn't want to go there.
02:38This is not news.
02:39So you know who your enemy is.
02:42You know who your target is.
02:44Why they shot down every overture at a sign and trade.
02:48I will never understand because now you're sitting here and here's, what's interesting.
02:53In the report, they consider Asur Thompson their second best player.
02:59So if you consider Asur your second best player, first of all, you're effed as far as winning a championship.
03:05There's no world he can be your second best guy and you're winning a title.
03:08Hey, he was knocking down some jumpers in those shoot-around clips.
03:12The point I am making is the following.
03:17This, nothing has materially changed.
03:19And the things you're hearing out of Duren's camp, the fact that there is reporting that he is considering the
03:29qualifying offer.
03:30Ergo, $9.5 million, leave as much as $140 on the table just to get up out of here.
03:38I think that's a bad job by the organization.
03:40If I got to hear another person, I'm so proud of Trajan for holding the line.
03:44Okay, that's good in a vacuum, but to what Brendan just said, you cost yourself the offseason we needed.
03:54Oh, but they have so much cap space now.
03:56And what are you doing with that?
03:58At best, you're suggesting that you're going to play this season and then do a blockbuster at the deadline where
04:05you would get rid of Jalen Duren and then have to integrate someone on the fly.
04:09That's not how it works.
04:11So I can have a lot of problems with Duren because I think he's out of his mind.
04:16My problems reside with the franchise.
04:19In a vacuum is not how we do these things.
04:22I don't think Duren and this organization played their hand correctly because now nobody can trade for Duren.
04:28All the money's been allocated.
04:30Teams are about to report to camp.
04:32And it's done.
04:34I would agree with you on the offseason as a whole that they didn't play their hand correctly.
04:38I think Trajan Langdon had moves planned for larger pieces than what they already got.
04:44And they fell through or he got beat or bested on some of those, i.e.
04:49the Austin Reeves deal or the Tyler Hero trade or the Jalen Brown trade, whatever.
04:54The Pelicans were not going to play ball.
04:57You see, they finally made a was it a trade or a signing?
04:59They finally made one.
05:01Anyways, that franchise should be contract.
05:03They're unbelievable.
05:04But I agree that Langdon misplayed his hand in the offseason as a whole.
05:09I was one of those people saying I'm glad he's holding the line on Duren.
05:13But it is a very thin line to toe because the leverage immediately flips in the situation that he accepts
05:22the qualifying offer.
05:23And you have to give him the qualifying offer.
05:25Otherwise, he's not a restricted free agent.
05:27But if he accepts the qualifying offer, you now have an all NBA third team center on your team who
05:35is willing to tell the public and his teammates to their face.
05:39Since I am leaving, I am willing to sacrifice millions and millions of dollars to get out of here as
05:46soon as possible.
05:47Yeah, that's why I think it was a bad job by Trajan.
05:49And that is not going to go well on the floor next year.
05:51I'm glad we had a middle ground because you're right.
05:53In a vacuum, he's holding the line.
05:55He's doing the right thing.
05:56You can't pay him 57.
05:57You just cannot.
05:58No, you can't pay him 47.
05:59You can't pay him 37.
06:01And that's my point.
06:01Why did they shoot down all the sign and trade stuff when you knew what he was asking for and
06:05you knew you were never going to get there?
06:07You needed to keep all options open and they didn't.
06:10And now they're stuck.
06:12I agree that the public shooting down of the sign and trade was a misstep because then all the other
06:19teams are gun shy about even going for it.
06:22But the key thing about a sign and trade is all three parties have to agree.
06:28Yes.
06:29The Pistons, the team they're trading with, and the player.
06:32And if it's not a deal that Durin likes, he's probably not going to agree.
06:36And I don't know that another team is going to agree because Durin, it sounds like, is only going to
06:40agree to a max deal.
06:42Well, then you're screwed.
06:43The biggest report that scares me the most is actually not this one.
06:46And it's the one from John Hollinger, former Memphis Grizzlies executive turned writer for The Athletic that we had earlier
06:55this week.
06:56I had a nickname for him back in the day when he was here.
07:01It was or it was not John Hollinger.
07:05It was.
07:06Oh, my God.
07:07Go on with your story.
07:08I'm sorry.
07:08Carry on.
07:09But I apologize.
07:11But it's the idea that Durin could accept the qualifying offer and then the Pistons are really screwed.
07:18That's what I'm most worried about because then you lose all the leverage.
07:21Look, I think this is a story that, look, baseball season took over.
07:26The Red Wings drama this summer.
07:27Lions training camp.
07:28This has flown under the radar.
07:30But the Pistons are built on a culture.
07:32They're built on trust.
07:33They're built on that locker room playing hard when most of the league is on spring break.
07:38This, to me, impacts everything they're built on.
07:41And the minute that Jalen Durin didn't value that culture, that he was delusional about his value, I said early
07:48on in this, get him up out of here.
07:50I saw what I needed to see in the playoffs.
07:53And again, I've been steadfast about it.
07:55Now, I am fine if you want to bring him back and pay him 30 a year.
07:59AAV, the average starter in the NBA, is making about 23.
08:03I'll pay you 30.
08:04I'll give you five at 150.
08:05But that's it.
08:07That's my problem.
08:08And that's why this report scares me, is that if he comes back, I don't think everything's copacetic.
08:13I think he comes back with a very bad taste in his mouth.
08:16Oh, yeah.
08:16And then that, again, now you can call the wambulance.
08:19We as fans, we're going to look at this and go, all right, so then is he all in or
08:23not?
08:23Well, but then we're doing the Dylan Larkin thing, too, and the Tarek Skubel thing, and it's just all over
08:27again.
08:27No, and that's why I don't like our GMs in this town.
08:30That's why I don't respect it.
08:32The thing that irks me also about the Hollinger report in The Athletic the other day is he said that
08:36the Pistons don't have an incentive, and he didn't really give a reason why, to sign Durr into a short
08:44-term deal.
08:45And that's what I've been advocating for this whole time.
08:47If he thinks he's worth the max, at some point, someone has to sit down and tell him, you're an
08:53adult, dude, okay?
08:54You average 10 points in the playoffs.
08:56You're not going to get $60 million this year.
08:58But if you think that's what you're worth, go out there and prove it.
09:01Here's one year at 30, one year at 35.
09:04I'd even do 40 for one year if he wants a prove-it deal.
09:07But in the Hollinger report, the Pistons would not be incentivized to do a short-term deal.
09:12I was under the impression that it's because they want Durr in long-term.
09:15They do, but they want him at a price that he clearly disagrees with.
09:19And this is dragging into a point.
09:21Feelings have been hurt.
09:22The qualifying offer's in play.
09:25This is where a real GM, you've got to know when to pull the ripcord.
09:28And unfortunately, we're sitting here on August 21st.
09:31The rest of the East got better.
09:32You didn't.
09:33I think you got marginally better.
09:35You got better in the margins.
09:36You did exactly what Langdon is famous for saying.
09:39But I don't think you're at the top of the East.
09:41I don't think you're number two.
09:42I don't think you're number three.
09:43I don't think you're number four.
09:44No.
09:44So now you're sitting here and I'm going, look, this is the question, I guess, for you guys.
09:49Have you had enough with Durr?
09:51Like, have you had enough?
09:53Or are you still taking up for the player that you believe is an all-star, you believe he's
09:57an all-NBA guy, and you believe the team is at fault here?
09:59But I don't know, man.
10:01Like, I can tell you I think they misplayed their hand, but I've had enough of him.
10:04Because I think you just said it best.
10:06Dude, you're an adult.
10:07Like, we have to be able to talk realistically with each other.
10:10You know, neither of us is George Clooney.
10:12You have to accept that as a fact.
10:14Jalen, you're not getting 287, okay?
10:17You're not good enough.
10:18You are not that guy.
10:20I don't know what to tell you.
10:22I've had enough of him.
10:23And I don't want to watch him.
10:25Imagine Jeremy Otto fumbles an update, stutters 10 times, doesn't get his out cue right, screws
10:32it up, and all of a sudden he, you know, he comes back and he's like, hey, Mike, I want
10:38500 grand next year.
10:39I take that to powers.
10:40Don't look at me.
10:41But you know what I mean?
10:42I'm trying to make a quote.
10:43Honestly, I would pay to see that conversation.
10:46I'd like to see that.
10:47I want Jeremy Otto in a dramatization playing the role of Jalen Duren.
10:52But the difference in value, the difference in value, like the idea that you can underperform
11:03and ask for more than that performance is worth, and he's just stuck on that.
11:07Like, you have to be an adult.
11:09Well, maybe they're waiting until the last second, but Ramona Shelburne's report seems
11:13to be the most accurate.
11:14This is going to drag into September.
11:17I won't be surprised if we reach holdout status.
11:21Oh, that'd be amazing.
11:24And again, Hollinger seems to think something, you know, history says cooler heads will prevail
11:28and they'll reach a multi-year deal.
11:31Every day you're walking the planet without that guaranteed deal, you are incurring risk.
11:37Think about this.
11:38Yes.
11:39If I repped him and I had 150 on the table, 140 on the table, look, is it everything we
11:45want?
11:46Clearly not.
11:47What can't you do with this?
11:50That you think you can do with 220, with 250?
11:54What are we talking about?
11:56You're 25.
11:58You've got multiple deals left.
12:01This sets up you and the next 10 generations of Durrance.
12:05What are we talking about?
12:07I just, look, I think it's insane behavior.
12:10I don't think, I think he's out of his mind.
12:13And if he takes that qualifying offer, he's saying up front, I don't want to be a Detroit
12:16Piston.
12:17Awesome.
12:18Let's put that guy in our locker room.
12:20I leave it to the people.
12:22Like I said, I didn't think we had front page news today, but I like a little update here
12:27with this.
12:27Got a little something on the Tigers, a little something with the Lions.
12:30This, I've had my fill.
12:32I don't ever need to see Durrance in a Piston uniform again.
12:34Because I'm, being an adult, I'm tired of this.
12:37But I'm also tired of the team because they've played into this.
12:41Oh, you don't want to take our deal?
12:43Do me a favor.
12:44Shop one.
12:45I dare you.
12:46Go produce a sign and trade.
12:48We'll participate fully.
12:49You want to cash your chips in?
12:50You want to go to Sacramento?
12:52We'll help you.
12:52And they were denying sign and trade rumors, but he still went out and tried to find one
12:58and couldn't.
12:59His representation, I'll go to my grave, believe in his reps, leaked that Celtics thing.
13:04The Celtics were never signing this cat.
13:06Ten minutes after that report, it was like a circuit court judge who was college football.
13:11Oh, yeah, Jalen Dern wants to go to the Celtics cutscene.
13:14They signed Mitchell Robinson for $10 and a sleep number billow.
13:17Give me a break.
13:18He tried everything to get out of here.
13:20Why would I want him back?
13:22I don't.
13:23I don't care if you're here or you're not.
13:26Oh, but his regular seat.
13:27They were playing teams, not trying.
13:30They were in the most god-awful Eastern Conference we've seen.
13:35Oh, wow.
13:36He bullied some eight-year-old.
13:37Cool.
13:38So did.
13:38And Miggy bullied a fat kid back in the day.
13:41It's the same thing.
13:43That's Durin's season.
13:44What Miggy did to the kid at the restaurant years ago.
13:48Honestly, that's all he did.
13:50Durin showed up against bums and bullied him.
13:53And then when the playoffs happened, what happened?
13:55Wendell Carter took his girl and put him in a locker.
13:58We're done.
13:58I don't need to see anymore.
14:01I get so tired of this crap.
14:03The playoffs are the only thing that matters.
14:06You failed.
14:07End.
14:08I don't know what they're going to do, but I'll tell you.
14:10For me, sitting here, I've had enough.
14:12You can go.
14:14But I'm not going to get my wish.
14:16They, Bill, I don't know what they're going to do.
14:18Can you imagine he signs a deal for $130 and he's miserable?
14:21Awesome.
14:22Can't wait.
14:23We'll read again.
14:24We'll get to the people next.
14:2597.1.
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