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Jalen Duren’s Fast Start Could Lift the Pistons
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Detroit’s young center delivered 24 first-half points against Minnesota, flashing the mobility, aggression and defensive buy-in the Pistons need to raise their ceiling.
Jalen Duren did more than pile up preseason points in Detroit’s 128-106 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Pistons center supplied a sharp reminder of the player Detroit needs him to become: quicker, more assertive with the ball, reliable at the foul line and capable of making an impact before an opponent’s defense has time to settle in.
Duren scored 24 points in the first half while playing only 15 minutes, making eight of nine field-goal attempts and all eight of his free throws. He opened by hitting a short jumper over Rudy Gobert, later pushed the ball coast to coast for a dunk, and looked comfortable seeking his own offense. It was only one preseason night, but it offered a meaningful glimpse of a more complete version of Duren.
A Different Kind of Offensive Confidence
The most promising part of Duren’s performance was not simply the total. It was the variety. A center who can finish around the rim is valuable, but Detroit’s offense becomes harder to manage when Duren can confidently make a short jumper, attack in transition and punish teams at the free-throw line. His only missed field-goal attempt came from three-point range, underscoring just how efficient his night was otherwise.
The eight-for-eight foul shooting stood out because it changes the math late in possessions and late in games. Duren does not need to become a high-volume perimeter scorer to expand his value. He needs opponents to respect that he can convert the basic chances available to him, including the ones created when defenses foul rather than concede a dunk. Against Minnesota, he looked ready to accept that responsibility rather than defer from it.
Mobility May Be the Key to His Next Step
Jimmy Wardell’s chief takeaway was that Duren looked quicker and more intent on scoring. That observation matters because the Pistons’ hopes are tied not only to Duren’s physical gifts, but to how effectively he can use them in a faster, more demanding style. His coast-to-coast finish was an eye-catching play, yet it also reflected the pace Detroit wants to establish through stops, rebounds and transition opportunities.
The discussion also pointed to Duren appearing slower after adding weight for last season’s playoff run. The hosts viewed an incentive tied to maintaining a lower weight as a potentially helpful guardrail for a young player still learning how to manage his body over a long season. The goal is not for Duren to sacrifice strength; it is to preserve the burst that lets him run the floor, recover defensively and finish possessions with force.
Detroit’s Defense Can Create Duren’s Opportunities
The Pistons’ preseason identity has been rooted in defensive activity. Detroit was described as averaging 25 forced turnovers per game, with the first unit, bench and players trying to earn roster spots all embracing the same effort level. Duren’s early steal from Gobert, when he simply reached in and took the ball, fit the picture of a team expected to pressure opponents rather than wait for mistakes.
That style can make life easier for Cade Cunningham as well as Duren. More takeaways mean more possessions that begin with the opponent out of position, allowing Cunningham to avoid initiating every action from the backcourt and allowing big men to run into early offense. Detroit will not shoot 57 percent from the field every night or make 44 percent of its threes, as it did against Minnesota. But a defense that speeds up games can generate easier looks even when the shooting cools.
The Pistons Need Production That Travels
Preseason efficiency should be treated with the proper caution, especially when rotations are unsettled and teams are still preparing for opening night. Detroit itself has been loose with the basketball, averaging around 20 turnovers in preseason action. Those numbers should settle when the regular-season rotation tightens, but they also show why one explosive performance cannot be mistaken for a finished product.
Still, Duren’s showing comes at the right time. Detroit faces a difficult early schedule, including games against Boston, Miami, Philadelphia and New York. The Pistons will need their core players to establish dependable habits before those tests arrive. If Duren can pair his rebounding and interior presence with quicker decisions, cleaner free-throw shooting and sustained defensive energy, Detroit gains a major advantage without needing to reinvent its roster.
What It Means
The Pistons do not need Duren to carry the offense every night. They need him to be a force whose growth makes every other piece more dangerous: a rim-running partner for Cunningham, a reliable finisher when the defense collapses and a center active enough to turn defense into momentum. His performance against Minnesota suggested those possibilities are real.
Detroit has one preseason game remaining before the regular season begins, and the larger judgments will come after the games count. But Duren’s 24-point half was not empty preseason noise. It was a timely signal that the Pistons’ ceiling may rise substantially if their young center brings this quicker, more aggressive version of himself into the season.
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