NBA News August 23: Duren situation and Jaylen Brown trade details

The Jalen Duren contract extension is becoming a situation in Detroit, while more details continue to emerge in Boston about the trade that sent Jaylen Brown to Philadelphia. And while Duren and Detroit still have to figure out how their standoff will end, Celtics owner Bill Chisholm admitted that trading Brown was anything but an easy decision.

Duren-Pistons, extension talks becoming an issue

If Miami is practically waiting on official confirmation, the situation in Detroit is much less settled. Negotiations between Jalen Duren and the Pistons on a new contract have reportedly become tense, with ESPN’s Tim MacMahon describing them as “particularly tense.” So this is no longer simply a matter of the usual financial gap between a player and a franchise: according to MacMahon, negotiations that have become this complicated could have consequences for the relationship between the two sides.

And that is precisely the aspect that should concern Detroit. Duren is still very young and represents one of the players the Pistons have built their future around, but the two sides have been unable to find common ground on the value of his next contract. As a restricted free agent, Detroit retains a strong position in the market, but there is also a much riskier scenario in the background: Duren could accept the qualifying offer, play another season with the Pistons and enter next summer with much more freedom over his future.

That would be far from ideal for Detroit. The Pistons have spent years accumulating young talent, and Duren has become one of the most important pieces of the project; a contract-related split would risk undermining some of the work already done. There is still time to find a solution, but at this point the issue no longer looks like a simple summer formality.

Celtics owner didn’t want to trade Jaylen Brown

In Boston, meanwhile, more details continue to emerge about one of the summer’s most stunning moves. Bill Chisholm admitted he had plenty of doubts before approving Jaylen Brown’s trade to the Philadelphia 76ers and that he needed to be convinced by Brad Stevens and the Celtics’ front office.

It wasn’t an easy decision, they had to convince me. I have a lot of trust in Brad Stevens and his staff, but as a fan, it was difficult to accept

Bill Chisholm

As an owner, he trusted the people running the team, but as a fan, watching one of the symbols of Boston’s most recent era leave was considerably more difficult.

Klay Thompson, two years to try to win in Miami

After the buyout with Dallas, Klay Thompson’s future is now set. The four-time NBA champion will sign a two-year contract worth nearly $13 million with the Miami Heat, with a player option for the second season. To choose Miami, Klay gave up a significant portion of the money he was due to receive from the Mavericks, confirming how much the opportunity to compete at a high level again influenced his decision.

For the Heat, it makes plenty of sense, especially when considering the roster construction. Miami has Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo, two players who can draw enormous defensive attention inside the paint, and adding one of the best shooters in NBA history makes it much more difficult to collapse on them. Thompson no longer needs to be the Klay of his best years with the Warriors: at 36, he is primarily being asked to space the floor, punish defensive help and bring experience to a team looking to compete for a championship.

Miami also manages to complete the move without burning through all of its salary-cap flexibility. Thompson’s relatively modest contract leaves the Heat with some room to make additional moves to the roster and makes the deal even more intriguing: the financial risk is limited, while the potential impact alongside Giannis could be significantly greater.

DeRozan joins Jokic for $3.9 million

Denver, meanwhile, can begin seriously thinking about how to use DeMar DeRozan, who joined the Nuggets on a one-year contract worth just $3.9 million. At 37, he will no longer be a player around whom an offense is built, but he is still coming off a season averaging 18.4 points per game and gives Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray another option for moments when they need someone capable of creating his own shot.

The fit isn’t perfect, particularly because DeRozan does not provide the three-point volume normally sought alongside Jokic, but at this price, that is almost secondary. Denver acquired a six-time All-Star on the minimum without having to sacrifice assets and can afford to experiment during the regular season to determine the best role for him.

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