Detroit Pistons

I mean, he went chapter and verse on it, but one of the things he pointed out was there was an unquestioned value to having your team be in a good place to start the season.

And we talked about this with Detroit, and that's the next contract we're going to talk about.

So Keontae George and Asar Thompson got, even though they are quite different players, they both got essentially the same contract.

Asar

I'm going to take a hard pass.

How can Memphis avoid the Duren drama that is engulfing Detroit right now? Stick around here on Lockdown Grizzlies.

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I need Derrick Henry to do some more things.

But anyway, this isn't locked on fantasy football, but that would be cool.

Jalen Duren, reports have come out that he has turned down, I believe it was a five-year, $200 million contract contract offer from the Detroit Pistons.

And here's what I'm struggling with, Michael.

Then we get to the four teams in the play in for my listing.

I have the Pistons, the Hawks, the Magic and the Miami Heat, which may come as a surprise to all.

But I'll get into that a little bit more.

later so let's get into the nooks and crannies of these teams starting with the playing teams and I'm going to start with one of the budding rivalries in the NBA the Detroit Pistons and the Cleveland Cavaliers obviously but the Pistons won 60 games last year let's not forget nor sleep on them they were the number one seed in the Eastern Conference for a reason and Cleveland needed seven games to get through them in the second round and Cade Cunningham was playing through a collapsed lung and a fractured rib mind you and Detroit's response to that this offseason was adding shooting around Cade Cunningham because Cade is the engine he's going to have the ball in his hands he's going to be the guy who's creating advantages but there are questions that the Detroit Pistons have to answer that have them in this tier for me.

Did they add another star to play alongside Cade Cunningham and take pressure off of him immediately? No.

And that's a major reason that I think Detroit will land in the play-in.

But the next question is, do they still have the weight of Jalen Duren not signing with them in restricted free agency after being offered a massive contract? Yes, and if he is unwilling to participate in training camp or ends up signing somewhere else, which seems unlikely, it would be devastating for this Detroit Pistons organization because a five-year, $200 million deal is a lot of money.

And if he's unwilling to accept the terms of that contract, there may be more than what we can fully understand at this point.

You don't

think they can be the 0-4 Pistons? I'm sorry.

I know that's a sore spot.

I mean, if you're the

0-4 Pistons, you have to play defense at, like, an all-time level.

And you have to have the versatility of some players like Wallace.

You have to have

I remember it was the Laker Detroit series, and I saw them.

And I stood in front of them and just cheered the Detroit Pistons.

And they cursed me out, which was great.

Like, you don't have to be here.

Basketball player for the Mavericks.

He played for the Pistons.

The Utah Jazz traded for Adrian Dantley back in the day.

Oh, I said his name.

Bad job by me.

Former mayor of Detroit.

He played for the Pistons.

He's still alive.

Each show will feature one team from the East and one team from the West going in alphabetical order.

So let's keep it rolling here with the Detroit Pistons from the East, and then we're going to go ahead and review the Memphis Grizzlies from the West.

So World B, the Detroit Pistons, took another giant step forward last year, finishing the regular season with 60 wins.

And they were the only Eastern Conference team to do so.

Their 60-22 record was the best in the East and also the third best in the entire league last year.

John Collins is the guy too, uh, for all our listeners out there, he shot 40% from three point land last year, which is a huge improvement in his game.

That's going to come into play here with Kate Cunningham and well in the pick and pop there.

And, uh, You mentioned the defense being at an all-time high with the Detroit Pistons.

Next, making us your first listen today and every single day.

Locked on Pistons for your second listen.

Jalen Dern's being offered five years, 200 million, according to reports, and isn't taking it.

Fascinating.

$200 million over five years.

What's going on? Bold? Is there a rift? Is there something else to this? I find this endlessly fascinating as somebody who likes to think about the agent and team and player side of all this.

And Kuka Hill knows the Pistons better.

He'll tell you more at LockedOnPistons.

Um, that's good.

Previously, she previously covered the Detroit Tigers, the Detroit Red Wings, and the Detroit Pistons.

So familiar with, with, uh, that part of the country it seems for, for Brooke Fletcher.

So should be a good broadcast.