Milwaukee Bucks Interested in Jalen Duren

The Milwaukee Bucks have entered the race for All-NBA big man Jalen Duren

by Aiden Fermaner

22/09/26

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The Jalen Duren Pistons saga has been long-winded and has dominated the back end of this NBA free agency. The Bucks have thrown their name in the ring and are showing some serious interest in the young star.

Duren has reportedly felt as though he has been disrespected by the Pistons' front office as he is seeking a contract north of $200 million over five years. The Sacramento Kings have been frontrunners to steal Duren during these negotiations, and now the Bucks have joined the party, showing interest in Duren. The New York Times has reported the following,

"the Sacramento Kings have signaled a willingness to pay him a max-salary deal next summer. That alone has aided his leverage, but there are at least two other teams — including the Milwaukee Bucks — that are known to have serious interest in Duren (both now and, potentially, next summer)."

The Pistons have upped their offer to $200 million over 5 years, but Duren still seems unhappy with the situation, and it seems we are entering a realm where one way or another, we won't be seeing Duren on the Pistons over the next few seasons.

As a Bucks fan, on the one hand, I like Duren and think he can continue to be a great player and grow. On the other hand, I watched his playoff run closely, and he still needs to grow and improve before he is in the tier of players who are deserving of a near-max contract. I think many big men in the league can offer more value and be a budget option for teams. There is a big jump from your tier-one big men to lower-tier big men that are offering limited dimensions of play but will fill a role and do it well. Look at Wendell Carter in the Magic-Pistons series. You would not really be able to split the two in terms of stats. Carter averaged 11 points and 7 rebounds; Duren averaged 10.6 points and 9.4 rebounds in the series. That can't really be a $20-$30 million difference in contract.

I honestly don't see a deal happening for the Bucks or the Kings this offseason. Duren will either take his qualifying offer and perform next season to get himself the contract he wants (possibly with the Bucks; we will pick that up if the time comes). Or he will take a smaller deal with the Pistons, like the $200 million over five years, to give him security in case his playoff struggles potentially continue into this season.