Although Jalen Duren’s new five-year, $200MM contract with the Pistons was technically signed on Friday, the team didn’t publicly announce the news until it put out a press release on Saturday afternoon (Twitter link).

“We’re excited to have Jalen in Detroit as a core piece of our team for years to come,” president of basketball operations Trajan Langdon said. “He’s been an important part of our success over the last two seasons, and we’ve seen tremendous growth in his game.

“Jalen has accomplished a great deal at a young age, and we believe his best basketball is still ahead of him. We’re proud of the work he’s put in and look forward to his continued growth and impact on our team.”

Duren helped Detroit win an Eastern Conference-best 60 games last season after averaging 19.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists while shooting 65.0% from the field and 74.7% from the foul line in 70 appearances (28.2 minutes per game). He was named to his first All-Star team and also claimed a third-team All-NBA spot.

Here’s more from the Central:

Veteran forward Kelly Oubre Jr. signed a two-year, $16MM contract with the Pacers this offseason. He said he’s been picking up the team’s up-tempo system pretty well in his first few days of training camp, per Tony East of Circle City Spin. “Every day is a learning process. It’s gonna be like that all year. But one thing I’ve learned is that I love this,” Oubre said. “I love this style of play. I love thriving in a 0.5 (half-second) system and making quick decisions, unselfish basketball. I’m excited. I think the sky is beyond the limit.” Oubre also said Indiana’s more laid-back lifestyle appealed to him because he has a growing family.
As Zion Brown of The Indianapolis Star writes (subscriber link), the Pacers’ center rotation looks much different this fall than it did a year ago. Following Myles Turner’s departure in free agency, the Pacers’ 2025 preseason roster featured Jay Huff, Isaiah Jackson, James Wiseman and Tony Bradley all vying for minutes and roles. This year, they have Ivica Zubac as the starter, with Huff and Larry Nance Jr. offering completely different looks off the bench. Head coach Rick Carlisle suggested two of the three big men might be used together in certain situations. “(Zubac)’s the starter, that’s pretty simple,” Carlisle said Friday. “With Larry Nance and Jay Huff, we have two guys that give us real versatility at that position as well. A lot of people don’t remember this, but Jay actually played some four last year at times, and Nance has played some four in his career. So if we need bigger lineups, there’s the ability to do that with those guys.”
Bulls big man Jalen Smith had his 2025/26 season ended prematurely due to a calf injury, but he said he’s fully healthy now, according to Will Gottlieb of CHGO Bulls (Twitter link). “It was an uptick in minutes on my body,” said Smith, who averaged 10.2 points and 6.7 rebounds in a career-high 20.7 minutes per game in 53 games last season. “I didn’t fully prepare my body for that…But this summer, the main aspect was being able to prepare myself for it, if that happens again.”