Detroit Pistons Troy Weaver said he was going to be aggressive this offseason, and he was true to his word. He sent Jerami Grant to the Portland Trail Blazers the day before the draft, and he used a pick secured in that trade to trade back into tonight’s NBA Draft lottery to draft coveted big man Jalen Duren of Memphis.
The deal was a three-team trade involving the Charlotte Hornets, the New York Knicks and the Pistons. Detroit will send Charlotte the 2025 first-round pick from the Milwaukee Bucks and will take on the last year of Kemba Walker’s $9.1 million contract.
Charlotte is getting additional assets, per Rod Boone.
Sources: #Hornets compensation for Jalen Duren:
2023 Denver 1st round pick
2023 Knicks 2nd round pick
2023 Utah 2nd round pick
2023 Dallas/Miami 2nd round pick (most favorable)
2024 Knicks 2nd round pick— Rod Boone (@rodboone) June 24, 2022
Honestly, I can’t keep track of whose pick originally belonged to whom, but we’ll sort it out.
The Knicks were looking to cut money as it attempts to pursue free agents this offseason. Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reports that the Pistons and Walker will discuss a buyout that will allow Kemba to enter free agency and try to catch on with a contending team.
Duren is one of the most athletic big men in the draft, which is a theme for Weaver after drafting perhaps the most athletic guard in Jaden Ivey at No. 5.
Duren is 6-foot-11 and 250 pounds and is one of the draft’s youngest players. He has a 7-foot-5.25 wingspan and averaged 11.6 rebounds and 3 blocks per 36 minutes.
We will have more about Duren on DBB soon.