Jalen Duren’s loudest play of the night resulted from extra hustle.
Toward the end of the first half of the Detroit Pistons’ loss to the Indiana Pacers on Saturday, Isaiah Livers inbounded a heave to Marvin Bagley III on the opposite side of the floor. Duren caught all five Pacers defenders off-guard, barreling down the middle of the lane, receiving a pass from Bagley and finishing a two-handed poster dunk on Aaron Nesmith.
The rookie big man has made strides this season, and his 16-point, 11-rebound, two-block performance Saturday highlighted several areas he has improved.
But that particular play resulted from Duren doing something simple — running. If Duren got down the floor even quicker, Nesmith may not have even been there to contest the dunk.
“If you watch the tape a little bit further, go home and watch it, I got on him today because he’s walking the whole court instead of running,” Pistons coach Dwane Casey said after practice Sunday. “He could’ve got an easier dunk if he would’ve ran all the way. I told him he tricked them. He fell asleep and just snuck in there.
“He’s gotta run, and it’s something that he has to develop that winning habit of doing. He did a better job in spurts, but now he’s gotta get back to running. It’s something he can do.”
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Duren, the NBA’s youngest player, had clear translatable skills entering his first season. He has been the team’s best offensive rebounder and a consistent lob and putback threat. The 19-year-old’s improved footwork and free throw shooting Saturday helped him tally his 13th double-double of the season. Thanks to his size and athleticism, some aspects of the game are naturally easier for him.
By consistently running hard, he could simplify the game more. After missed shots from his teammates or from himself, Duren sometimes lollygags while getting back to the opposite end of the floor. It disorganizes the team defensively, forcing smaller players to pick up opposing bigs, and occasionally leads to transition opportunities. Often the Pistons’ lone rim protector on the floor, Duren needs to be among the first players racing down the floor.
Running hard creates easy buckets on offense as well, as Duren’s two-handed poster dunk illustrated. He’s a gifted athlete, and the coaching staff is challenging him to maximize his athleticism by getting down the floor quicker.
“I know it sounds simple, but that young man can be a great runner in our league,” Casey said. “Getting that habit, whether it’s conditioning and he’s coming off of injuries so I’m going to give him a mulligan on that. But he has to be a better runner to get back and help us in transition. Too many times, our guards get stuck on big guys because we’re not running back. That’s my charge with him. He knows it. It’s something that young big players have to get into the habit of doing.”
Casey acknowledged poor conditioning is also a factor in Duren’s running. He missed six straight games due to ankle soreness prior to Thursday’s loss to the Charlotte Hornets, and was limited in his previous three games before the team shut him down for two weeks to rest his body. The team limited his minutes to 20 against the Pacers, and 21 minutes against the Hornets. He’s getting his wind back.
It’s another growth area for a rookie who has grown in a short amount of time. He was 8-for-10 on foul shots Saturday — career-highs in both attempts and makes. He’s making 62.6% of his free throws this season (league average is 78.3%), but since Jan. 1 he has knocked down 70.4% (38-for-54).
His improved comfort with his back to the basket has helped. Duren showed off his footwork twice Saturday — posting up on the right block before spinning left and finishing a right-handed layup in the first quarter, and finishing another layup following a spin-and-step in the second quarter. He was advertised as a rim-runner coming out of Memphis, and that has been true. But his flashes of being able to create his own shot is welcome, and not a surprise to the coaching staff.
“I feel like this is, I don’t know, just playing basketball, honestly,” Duren said after Saturday’s 11th straight loss. “I’ve been working out a lot, working on my game throughout the season. I feel like I’ve grown throughout the season as a player. I feel like this organization has helped me a lot. I just became more comfortable. I guess it’s showing.”
Duren has exceeded expectations this season, establishing himself as a rotation player in November. He has started half of his games played — 27 of 54 appearances — and his rim protection upside and ability to produce second chance points have helped him become an instant contributor.
The coaching staff doesn’t want him to forget the simple aspects of the game, though.
“All the other stuff, whether it’s the 3-point, the footwork in the post, the blocking shots, the dunks, they’re going to take care of themselves,” Casey said. “But if you don’t run to get to where you need to go all the time, every time, his job is going to be more difficult. That’s our charge with him to do, and he can do it.”
Catch our podcast “The Pistons Pulse” every Tuesday morning at 5 and on demand on freep.com or wherever you listen to podcasts. This week’s episode, embedded above, examines Jaden Ivey’s recent surge and more. See all of our podcasts and daily voice briefings at freep.com/podcasts.
Contact Omari Sankofa II at osankofa@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @omarisankofa.
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