Pistons’ Jalen Duren on cusp of first All-NBA selection: ‘He has been unbelievable’
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Jalen Duren always anticipated that this season could be a breakout year. He was eager to demonstrate the hard work he had put in during the offseason, particularly after coach J.B. Bickerstaff challenged him to elevate his game.
“It wasn’t something I was dwelling on or focusing on; being an All-Star was the main thing for me, if I’m being honest. I wanted to take that step,” Duren told The Detroit News. “It is something I always wanted to accomplish in my career. But in terms of this year alone, I never thought about it (All-NBA).”
….Duren’s play led to his first All-Star selection in February, and he’s also a strong contender for the Most Improved Player of the Year award. However, his ascent to All-NBA status really began after the All-Star break.
“For me, to be around young people who achieve their dreams and goals is why you get into coaching,” Bickerstaff said. “To help other people achieve, to build a team, that’s why you do the job every single day. It would mean a lot (for Jalen Duren to get All-NBA recognition) because I know how much it would mean to him and how far he’s come, and the work that he’s put in, and his dedication to it and the sacrifice that all these guys make to get to this point.”
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While Duren took the helm as the team’s primary scorer, Cunningham’s absence allowed the Pistons to delve deeper into Duren’s talents as a creation hub and playmaking big man.
“From JD’s ability to dominate both ends of the floor, the stretches where he’s had to carry us offensively and have big nights scoring the basketball, facilitating the basketball, growing to be a hub for this team where we can just throw him the ball and he can make decisions, make reads, make plays from there,” Bickerstaff said, in describing Duren’s impact.
"Then defensively how he dominates the defensive boards, how he protects the paint and then just the impact that he’s had on winning, which I think ultimately is the most important thing. You can have hollow numbers on a bad team, but if you can do what he’s done and help a team win, I think you’re deserving of it all.”
Duren’s name is now mentioned alongside big men legends, as he recently became the third player since the NBA-ABA merger to record multiple games in a season with 30 or more points while missing no more than one field-goal attempt and grabbing nine or more rebounds. he joins Hall of Famers Dwight Howard (2006-07) and Charles Barkley (1988-89), who also achieved the feat.
After notching 41 double-doubles, Duren has observed a shift in the defensive strategies used by opposing teams this season. He has realized that teams are now crowding him every time he receives the ball. He has also observed that teams are sending extra players his way during box-outs in an attempt to prevent him from getting rebounds.
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“He has been playing unbelievable basketball. J.B. has done an incredible job of unleashing a level of confidence in him of what he is capable of doing,” Orlando Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said. “When preparing for him, you have to now prepare for a lot of different things.”
He continued, “They (the Pistons) are setting a lot of screens for him with smaller guards, which is something they were not doing before. He is handling the ball more, getting downhill, and attacking the basket. All of those things have improved from where he was at the start of his career, and it is part of the reason why he is in that category for Most Improved Player.”
