Pistons’ Jalen Duren joined LeBron, others in history with latest effort
Jalen Duren turned in a monster stat line on Friday en route to a career performance to lead the Detroit Pistons to a double-overtime win over the San Antonio Spurs.
Duren produced 30 points, 17 rebounds, four blocked shots, three assists and one steal in the 138-131 victory. He finished by shooting 13-of-20 from the field in 42 minutes of action as the Pistons snapped a three-game losing streak.
The 13th pick became the youngest player to record 30 points and 17 rebounds in a game at 19 years, 84 days. He is just the fourth teenager ever with at least 30 points and 15 rebounds in a game, joining Paolo Banchero, LeBron James and Moses Malone.
Pistons coach Dwane Casey loved the effort by Duren.
For him to get 30 points and 17 rebounds, the young man could barely walk. I wanted to keep him in because he was being effective but he could barely walk down the stretch and that’s why we gave him a blow.
A big night for him. A big night on the boards, catching in traffic and finishing. He just made some big plays at the right time and finished under the basket. His footwork was pristine. I was really happy with the way he played.
The performance by Duren was yet another example of how dominant he has been on both ends of the court. He has emerged as a tremendous rebounder and has found great success in the paint on offense on the glass and by being a lob treat.
“I love these types of games to be able to compete with another young team and battle it out,” Duren said. “I felt like no one on their team could stop me so I just took advantage.”
Jalen Duren is the second-youngest player in NBA History with 30+ PTS and 15+ REB in a game.
The youngest was LeBron James.
30 PTS, 17 REB, 4 BLK for @JalenDuren pic.twitter.com/ZsZ17AMoCI
— NBA (@NBA) February 11, 2023
Duren is averaging 8.8 points and 8.9 rebounds on 66.1% shooting from the field. His 12 double-doubles and 434 rebounds lead all rookies. He has the fourth-most rebounds through 49 games to begin a career over the last 15 years.
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 on a nightly basis with Friday proving to be no different.
