Jalen Duren showed up big for the Pistons as he was a first-time All-Star and named to the All-NBA Third Team, but that was the regular season. During Detroit’s abbreviated playoff run, the skills that brought him those accolades all but vanished. That left Cade Cunningham without a proper running buddy. For the Pistons to succeed in the postseason, Duren has to bring that heat when it counts.
Jalen Duren’s All-NBA Honors Need To Be Reflected In His Postseason Play
Calling the 2025-2026 NBA season a breakout for Duren might be the understatement of the year. He was drafted by the Charlotte Hornets in 2022, but his rights were immediately traded to the New York Knicks and then the Pistons. Detroit has been home ever since.
It has taken some time, but Duren finally started to truly realize his potential this season. A big part of that has to be head coach J.B. Bickerstaff. He turned the Pistons around incredibly quickly after his hiring. He also played a major role in helping Duren find his next gear in the league. That can definitely be seen in his overall performance this season, which has been rewarded by the NBA.
Duren was an All-Star for the first time and was one of two Pistons, alongside Cunningham, to receive that honor this year. When the All-NBA announcements were made, Duren was named to the Third Team. It was his first nomination of this kind since being a member of the NBA All-Rookie Second Team in 2023.
Regular Season Duren Didn’t Show Up For The Playoffs
Unfortunately for the Pistons, that was regular-season Duren. Playoff Duren was a really different guy on the court. This wasn’t the player who was named an All-Star or made an All-NBA team. Virtually all of his key numbers went in the wrong direction, as did his intensity and his confidence. He was not the Duren fans were used to seeing throughout 2025-2026.
The most likely explanation was the bright lights of the playoffs. All of the Pistons looked off in their respective games in the postseason. There were definitely moments of brilliance, but they didn’t string them together consistently enough to get past the Cavaliers.
It was most pronounced with Duren, though. He was averaging 19.5 points per game in the regular season, but dropped to 10.2 in the playoffs. That’s nearly 10 points per game that the Pistons were missing. At the same time, he was also averaging more minutes, personal fouls, and turnovers per game. That is a bad performance from any player, let alone the current second option on the Pistons’ roster.
Next Season Is All About The Postseason For Duren
Without question, Duren’s game grew by leaps and bounds in 2025-2026. The same progression should be expected for him in 2026-2027, now that he and his coaches know what to lock in on next in his development cycle.
This season’s playoff experience will prove to be invaluable to him. Alongside the rest of his Pistons teammates, they made the playoffs for the first time in 2025 and were knocked out in the first round. Then, 2026 saw them go to game seven in the second round, which is a huge leap forward. With that kind of experience, the lights of the postseason hopefully won’t shine as brightly in Duren’s eyes in 2027.
Duren’s postseason woes largely seemed to have been caused by nerves. The only cure for that is time and experience, two things he has a lot more of now. As long as Duren continues his exponential growth next season, he will show up in the next playoffs as the player the Pistons and the rest of Detroit need him to be. And if he doesn’t, it might be time for the front office to make a move.
Featured Image: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images
