The Los Angeles Lakers didn't have to wait long to have a shot at revenge on the Detroit Pistons. For those unaware, Los Angeles was reportedly preparing to offer Austin Reaves in the range of $30 million per season when Detroit swooped in, made their interest known, and pushed the price to $44.5 million per year.
Mere days later, Los Angeles has a chance to get back at Detroit, as All-NBA Pistons center Jalen Duren is reportedly pursuing sign-and-trade opportunities.
Duren, 22, is a restricted free agent. As such, the Pistons reserve the right to match any offer sheet he receives. Before that conversation can come to pass, however, Detroit must first make its own attempt to re-sign him. And so they did. And so they failed.
According to Sam Amick of The Athletic, Duren was "underwhelmed" by the Pistons' opening offer and will now explore sign-and-trade scenarios once the moratorium is lifted on Tuesday, June 30.
"All-NBA forward Jalen Duren was underwhelmed by the Detroit Pistons’ initial offer in restricted free agency and is planning to explore sign-and-trade scenarios when they are permitted on Tuesday, league sources told The Athletic."
For a Lakers team that's in dire need of an upgrade at center, this could be a golden opportunity to not only get back at the Pistons, but secure their big man of the future.
Jalen Duren "is planning to explore sign-and-trade scenarios"
Duren has become perhaps the most polarizing player on the open market following a disappointing postseason. The Pistons won their first-round series and went to a Game 7 in Round 2, but Duren struggled to score in the same way he managed during the regular season.
Duren scored just 10.2 points in 30.1 minutes per game across 14 games played during the 2026 NBA Playoffs, with many expressing more concern over his passiveness than his production.
In saying that, he's still just 22 years of age and already ranks among the best centers in the NBA. He finished the 2025-26 regular season with averages of 19.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, 3.8 offensive boards, 2.0 assists, 0.8 blocks, and 0.8 steals on 65.0 percent shooting from the field.
An interior powerhouse who can play above the rim, create with a growing degree of efficacy, pass his teammates open, and dominate the offensive glass, Duren would check several boxes for the Lakers.
Signing him could prove costly, with the potential existing for Los Angeles to hand out a second max-level contract in a single summer. If they're willing to pay the price, however, then it appears realistic to believe that the Pistons could ultimately resign themselves to having to conduct a sign-and-trade.
It's by no means risk-free, but if the Lakers are interested in Duren, then they can simultaneously get back at the Pistons for raising Reaves' annual salary and find their center of the future.
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