The Detroit Pistons' dreaded losing streak has finally come to an end. After dropping four straight games, Detroit landed back in the win column with a 138-100 blowout against the Brooklyn Nets.
The Pistons returned to their winning identity, marked by a dominant performance from their All-Star center, Jalen Duren. The fourth-year big man gave the Nets all they could handle, scoring 26 points on 9-10 shooting from the field. Duren also had a solid bounce-back game defensively, adding two steals and two blocks to his stat line.
Duren's big night is sparking some big encouragement from his team in the Most Improved Player conversation. Pistons' point guard Cade Cunningham gave him a big endorsement during his postgame talk with the media after their victory against the Nets.
“I think the proof is in the pudding. As far as the leap he has made, how much teams respect him this year compared to last year. Their game plan is different, I assume. I think he's just taking a leap in a lot of different ways,” Cunningham explained, via Coty M. Davis. “This group, we don't really like talking about it. We just like going out and trying to show it. If my words mean anything, then I think it's clear cut.”
Duren has a current lead as the betting favorite for the award on FanDuel. He is currently averaging a career high of 18.6 points per game, which is almost a seven-point increase from the previous season.
Detroit's star center has also been a monster on the glass, ranking in the top ten in rebounds with 10.6 per game. That has helped him generate 31 double-doubles this regular season. He is also showing significant growth defensively, individually and as a team defender. Duren is posting the best defensive rating of his career at 107.2. That rating has been a major reason behind the Pistons' current spot as the second-highest rated defense in the NBA.
What J.B. Bickerstaff said about Jalen Duren
This breakthrough campaign helped earn Duren his first-ever selection as an NBA All-Star. His growth has also been a major catalyst behind Detroit's lead as the No. 1 team in the Eastern Conference. Pistons' head coach J.B. Bickerstaff also took time to advocate for Duren's candidacy for the Most Improved Player award after their game against Brooklyn.
“I think it's easy if you watch us play and if you watch us play consistently over the past year and a half or two years. The steps that he's taken from the beginning of last year to this year have made him an All-Star and become a dominant force on both ends of the floor,” Bickerstaff stated to the media. “You have to recognize a guy who works that hard and give him credit for the work he put in over the summer to continue to get better and understand what he wanted to make this year. And I'll say it again, his numbers aren't hollow. His numbers impact winning as well.”
With only 18 regular season games left, Duren can wrap the conversation up for the award with a strong end to the season. Rising stars like Jalen Johnson, Keyonte George, Ryan Rollins and others are making a push but Duren and the Pistons' consistency gives him a respectable lead at this moment.
