The Detroit Pistons and Jalen Duren are mired in the middle of a messy offseason standoff with training camp just around the corner.
The 22-year-old restricted free agent wants a deal in the neighborhood of $40 million a year. Detroit is not wildly far from that number, but the two sides still have not closed, and the longer talks drag on, the more a trade before the 2026-27 season looks like a real possibility.
Interest is already circulating. The Sacramento Kings and Milwaukee Bucks have been linked to Duren, yet one recent idea floating around Pistons circles points west instead.
Writing at DetroitJockCity.com, Cem Yolbulan sketched a package that would send Duren to the Los Angeles Clippers in exchange for Brandon Ingram, Brook Lopez, and a first-round pick.
On paper the swap has a certain logic. Detroit would add a former All-Star wing who regularly scores around 20 points a night and a championship-winning veteran big.
Los Angeles would land a young, high-upside center to build around after a chaotic stretch that has left the roster and draft cupboard both depleted.
The mechanics are not simple. Because Ingram was already traded from Toronto this summer, league rules would keep him from being flipped again for several months, so any deal would likely have to wait and take the form of a sign-and-trade.
The Clippers are also missing multiple first-round picks after the Kawhi Leonard situation, which makes attaching another draft asset a harder sell. Yolbulan noted they could instead include role players such as Max Strus or Derrick Jones Jr. to sweeten the return without surrendering more future selections.
For Detroit the appeal is not only ending the Duren saga. The Pistons want to maximize Cade Cunningham’s prime, and last spring’s playoff collapse exposed how thin their secondary scoring can look.
Ingram would give Cunningham a reliable offensive partner even if his defense is only average. Lopez, well past his peak, would still provide minutes and a veteran presence on a young roster.
If Strus or Jones Jr. came along, they could help replace wing depth Detroit lost over the summer.
Whether the Clippers would actually pay that price is another question. They are desperate to stay competitive after a historic punishment, which is why the idea cannot be dismissed outright.
Still, it is only one of several hypotheticals, and none of them is official. What is becoming harder to ignore is the growing sense that Detroit and Duren may not finish this negotiation as teammates.
If Los Angeles is willing to move Ingram, Lopez, and some extra pieces, the Pistons would have a reason to pick up the phone.
