Jalen Duren is meeting early expectations, and then some, for Pistons
When the Detroit Pistons drafted Jalen Duren, head coach Dwane Casey thought one aspect of his game would translate immediately to the NBA, and the former Coach of the Year was exactly right.
That, of course, would be Duren’s rebounding.
Duren, at 6 feet, 11 inches and 250 pounds, has been a monster on the glass in the early going and is hauling in rebounds at a historic rate. He is among the franchise rebounding leaders thus far and his name has been mentioned often with future Hall of Famer Dwight Howard.
The 13th pick is averaging 7.2 points and 8.2 rebounds on 62.5% shooting from the field. His 255 total rebounds lead all rookies and are the third-most through 31 career games in team history. He is also tied with Paolo Banchero for the most double-doubles among rookies with six.
Casey explained why Duren has been so successful on the boards.
He has a natural knack to rebound and that is something you can’t teach. Marvin Bagley went down and Nerlens Noel wasn’t healthy during training camp and the young kid just kept growing and growing and growing, and took advantage of the opportunity and is now starting. It’s good to see and it is fun to coach him.
Duren recently hauled in at least 11 rebounds in seven consecutive games from Dec. 7-20, which tied Howard for the longest such streak by a rookie in history. Included in that stretch was a career-high 19 rebounds on Dec. 14 versus Charlotte. He became the second youngest player ever (19 years, 26 days) to haul in that many rebounds, trailing only Howard, who was 18 years, 359 days.
He averaged 10 points and 13.7 rebounds during the streak.
Jalen Duren was a monster on the interior last night vs. the Hornets:
7 PTS | 19 REBS | 2 AST | 3 BLKS 😤
He hauled in a career-high 19 boards and was swatting shots like a young Dwight—BEAST‼️ pic.twitter.com/eKnO6crZf0
— Jack Kelly (@jack_kelly_313) December 15, 2022
Duren also leads the Pistons with 3.2 offensive rebounds per game, which ranks ninth among all players in the NBA. He is 12th in offensive rebounding percentage (12.5).
He looks to be settling in with the Pistons after starting in each of their last seven games. The team believes he is right on track with his development because he is a willing learner and is receptive to constructive feedback from coaches and teammates.
Duren feels that coming along the more he sees the court.
I felt like I’m progressing in just my understanding of the NBA game because it’s different than any other level of basketball that I’ve ever played so (I’m) just adjusting and just getting better. That’s a testament to the coaching staff and teammates that I have who are just helping me grow and get better on the court. Just teaching me and showing me different things.
Duren has been labeled by many as a raw player in terms of his development, and he believes that is an advantage. The next evolution of his game will include fine-tuning things on both ends of the court, but it is apparent the Pistons have a budding young player on their hands.
He is already regarded as one of the most athletic big men in the NBA and has been dominant inside the paint. He has seemingly endless energy and often presents matchup problems for teams.
You add all of that up, and Duren could be a force for years to come.
“I felt like this is only the beginning,” Duren said. “This is nothing that surprised me. I always felt like I’m good and I can play on this level even at a young age. Where I’m at now doesn’t really surprise me. I just want to keep getting better.”
Note: Ky Carlin of Sixers Wire contributed to this story
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