Jalen Montez Duren (born November 18, 2003) is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player for the

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division and play their home games at Li ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...

(NBA). He played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

for the

Memphis Tigers The Memphis Tigers are the Sport, athletic teams that represent the University of Memphis, located in Memphis, Tennessee. The teams compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I level as a member of ...

. A

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

, he stands and weighs . He was a consensus five-star

recruit __NOTOC__ Recruit can refer to: Military * Military recruitment * Recruit training, in the military * '' Rekrut'' (English: Recruit), a military recruit or low rank in German-speaking countries * Seaman recruit Books *''Le Réquisitionnaire'' (E ...

and one of the top players in the 2021 class. Duren was ranked as the top player in the 2022 class before reclassifying.

Early life

Hailing from

Sharon Hill, Pennsylvania Sharon Hill is a borough in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 5,697 at the 2010 census. Currently the population stands at 6,356 residents. Government The government of Sharon Hill operates under the Pennsylvania ...

, Duren grew up playing football and baseball in addition to basketball, which he ended up focusing on as he grew older and improved his skills. By the eighth grade he measured about , gaining recognition on the

Amateur Athletic Union The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It has ...

(AAU) circuit playing with Team Final and winning the MADE League title. Strong showings at the MADE Hoops Middle School Academy and the CP3 Rising Stars Camp that summer solidified his position as one of the top players in his class.

High school career

Duren committed to playing high school basketball at

Roman Catholic High School , motto_translation = Faith and Knowledge , accreditation = MSA , nickname = The Cahillites , conference = Philadelphia Catholic League , colors = Purple & Gold , yearbook ...

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

along with AAU teammate and highly-ranked guard Justice Williams. He averaged 12.8 points, 9.3

rebounds 'Rebound' is a term used in sports to describe the ball (or puck or other object of play) becoming available for possession by either opponent after an attempt to put the ball or puck into the goal has been unsuccessful. Rebounds are generally ...

and 2.5 blocks per game while shooting 71 percent from the field as a freshman, leading his team to their second consecutive

Philadelphia Catholic League The Philadelphia Catholic League is a high school sports league composed (as of the 2012-13 year) of 18 Catholic High Schools in Philadelphia and the surrounding Pennsylvania suburbs. The league itself was founded in the summer of 1920 on the steps ...

title. He earned first-team all-league and second-team all-state honors, and was named a

MaxPreps MaxPreps is an American website that specializes in coverage of American high school sports. The site is owned by Paramount Global and is a division of CBS Sports. Founded on August 1, 2002, the company has covered up to 29 sports, including b ...

Freshman All-American. That summer he was a standout performer at the 2019 Nike Elite 100 Camp. Duren averaged 18.1 points, 12.5 rebounds and 3.4 blocks per contest during his second year, leading his team to an 18–10 record. In the first round of the Catholic League playoffs he recorded 18 points and 18 rebounds against Bonner-Prendergast, hitting the game-winning

buzzer beater In basketball and other such timed sports, a buzzer beater is a shot that is taken before the game clock of a quarter, a half (if the half is the second one, then, a game), or an overtime period expires but does not go in the basket until after t ...

in the 61–59 victory on

Valentine's Day Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is celebrated annually on February 14. It originated as a Christian feast day honoring one or two early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine and, throu ...

. He added 20 points and 18 rebounds in their 83–73 semi-final win over regular season champions Archbishop Wood at the

Palestra The Palestra, often called the Cathedral of College Basketball, is a historic arena and the home gym of the Penn Quakers men's and women's basketball teams, volleyball teams, wrestling team, and Philadelphia Big 5 basketball. Located at 235 South ...

. They were unable to defend their league crown, though, as they were defeated by Neumann Goretti in the title game; Duren contributed 11 points and 16 rebounds in the 66–58 loss. In the first round of the PIAA class 6A playoffs, they defeated Coatesville 81–75 with Duren posting 13 points and eight rebounds. He recorded 20 points, six rebounds and eight blocks in their 62–51 quarter-final win over Pennridge before play was canceled due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. At the end of the year he collected first-team all-league, first-team all-state and MaxPreps Sophomore All-American honors. For his junior year Duren transferred to

Montverde Academy Montverde Academy is a private PK–12 school in Montverde, Florida, United States. History The school was founded in 1912 as Montgomery Industrial School. The school president was Henry P. Carpenter. It underwent a major expansion in 1921, whe ...

Montverde, Florida Montverde is a town in Lake County, Florida, United States. The population was 1,655 at the 2020 census and an estimated 1,675 in 2018. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Montverde wa ...

, who was in the process of joining the independent National Interscholastic Basketball Conference (NIBC) with other elite programs like Oak Hill,

Wasatch Academy Wasatch Academy is an independent, coeducational, college preparatory boarding school for grades 7-12 located in Mount Pleasant, Utah, United States. It was founded in 1875 by Reverend Duncan McMillan, a Presbyterian minister who had come to ...

and Sunrise Christian amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Duren was one of only five underclassmen named to the

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twic ...

Preseason All-American team. In January 2021, Duren had a strong showing competing against high-level talent at the St. James NIBC Invitational in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, including a

SportsCenter ''SportsCenter'' (SC) is a daily sports news television show, television program that serves as the flagship program and brand of United States, American cable television, cable and satellite television television network, network ESPN. The show ...

Top 10 play against

where he blocked a shot by catching the ball in mid-air. On March 11, Montverde avenged their only loss of the season by defeating Sunrise Christian 61–57 for the inaugural NIBC championship; Duren finished with 13 points and seven rebounds. He averaged 15.5 points, 10.6 rebounds and 2.4 blocks per game in NIBC conference play, leading the Eagles to a 12–1 league record (20–1 overall). He was also recognized as the 2020–21 MaxPreps Florida High School Basketball Player of the Year.

Recruiting

Duren overtook Emoni Bates in his junior year as the top prospect in the 2022 recruiting class, surpassing Bates as the number one recruit according to

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

247Sports 247Sports is an American network of websites that focus mainly on athletic recruitment in college football and basketball. It is owned and operated by Paramount. The website hosts a large network of team-specific subsites, with each subsite b ...

and

Rivals A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant o ...

. On August 6, 2021, he reclassified to the 2021 class and committed to playing college basketball for

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

over offers from

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

, Miami (Florida), the

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official List of developmental and minor sports leagues, minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development ...

and the Australia NBL.

College career

On November 19, 2021, Duren scored 19 points, grabbed 19 rebounds and blocked five shots in a 74–62 win against

Western Kentucky Western Kentucky is the western portion of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It generally includes part or all of several more widely recognized regions of the state. ;Always included * The Jackson Purchase, the state's westernmost generally recogniz ...

. He was named to the First Team All-

AAC AAC may refer to: Aviation * Advanced Aircraft, a company from Carlsbad, California * Alaskan Air Command, a radar network * American Aeronautical Corporation, a company from Port Washington, New York * American Aviation, a company from Cleveland, ...

as well as AAC Freshman of the Year. Duren lead Memphis to their first NCAA tournament appearance since

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

leading the Tigers to the round of 32. As a freshman, he averaged 12 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game. On April 18, 2022, Duren declared for the

2022 NBA draft The 2022 NBA draft (branded as the 2022 NBA Draft presented by State Farm for sponsorship reasons), the 76th edition of the National Basketball Association's annual draft, was held on June 23, 2022, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. The ...

, forgoing his remaining college eligibility.

Professional career

Detroit Pistons (2022–present)

Duren was selected with the 13th overall pick by the

Charlotte Hornets The Charlotte Hornets are an American professional basketball team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Hornets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division, and pla ...

in the

. On draft day, his rights were traded to the

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the National Basketball Associat ...

and then to the

. Duren joined the Pistons'

2022 NBA Summer League The 2022 NBA Summer League, also branded as the NBA 2K23 Summer League 2022, was an off-season competition held by the National Basketball Association (NBA) primarily at the Thomas and Mack Center and Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas, Nevada on the campus ...

roster. In his summer league debut, Duren scored nine points in an 81–78 win against the

Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Con ...

. On July 7, 2022, Duren signed a rookie-scale contract with the Pistons. On October 19, Duren made his regular season debut, putting up 14 points, 10 rebounds, and three blocks in a 113–109 win over the

Orlando Magic The Orlando Magic are an American professional basketball team based in Orlando, Florida. The Magic compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The franchise was establ ...

National team career

Duren played for

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

at the 2019 FIBA Under-16 Americas Championship in

Belém Belém (; Portuguese for Bethlehem; initially called Nossa Senhora de Belém do Grão-Pará, in English Our Lady of Bethlehem of Great Pará) often called Belém of Pará, is a Brazilian city, capital and largest city of the state of Pará in t ...

, Brazil. He averaged 10.3 points, 8.2 rebounds and two blocks per game en route to a gold medal and a spot on the tournament all-star five team.

Career statistics

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2021–22 , style="text-align:left;",

, 29 , , 29 , , 25.3 , , .597 , , .000 , , .625 , , 8.1 , , 1.3 , , .8 , , 2.1 , , 12.0

Player profile

Duren is widely considered the best "true post" player in his class by recruiting sites and sportswriters alike. He wields influence in the

paint Paint is any pigmented liquid, liquefiable, or solid mastic composition that, after application to a substrate in a thin layer, converts to a solid film. It is most commonly used to protect, color, or provide texture. Paint can be made in many ...

due to his size, strength, athleticism and footwork that allows him to dominate on both sides of the floor. Jake Weingarten, founder of recruiting site StockRisers.com, described him as

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

-ready as a tenth grader amid reports that the

was considering lowering the minimum draft age from 19 to 18. His physically imposing frame and shot-blocking talent drew comparisons to

Bam Adebayo Edrice Femi "Bam" Adebayo (born July 18, 1997) is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Kentucky Wildcats before being selected by the He ...

from

national basketball director Eric Bossi, while his AAU coach Chris Rountree likened him to

Marvin Bagley III Marvin Bagley III (born March 16, 1999) is an American professional basketball player for the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Duke Blue Devils and was a 2018 Consensus All-Amer ...

References

External links

Memphis Tigers bio

Montverde Academy Eagles bio

USA Basketball bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Duren, Jalen 2003 births Living people 21st-century African-American sportspeople African-American basketball players American men's basketball players Basketball players from Delaware Centers (basketball) Charlotte Hornets draft picks Detroit Pistons players Memphis Tigers men's basketball players People from New Castle, Delaware