Detroit Pistons rookie Jalen Duren continued a strong run on the glass on Friday and tied Dwight Howard in the history books with his latest performance versus the Sacramento Kings.
Duren recorded a career-high 15 points, 14 rebounds, one assist and one blocked shot in the 122-113 loss at home. He hauled in six offensive rebounds and finished 5-of-7 from the field in 30 minutes of work in his fourth game as a starter.
The effort was good for his fifth double-double of the season and fifth straight game with at least 12 rebounds, which tied Howard for the longest streak by a teenager in history.
Duren credited the performance to his drive and motor on the court.
Honestly, just working hard, just trying to outwork my opponent and get on the glass. I know a lot of teams are starting to realize that I’m crashing every time, but that’s just me trying to use my motor and try to get on the glass and help my team.
Jalen Duren was a beast on the interior last night, posting a career-high in points:
15 PTS | 14 REBS | 1 BLK | 5-7 FG 🌟😤
He also connected on 5-6 FTs—in his last 10 he's shooting 72 FT% (18/24)—the 19 year-old is always improving-FUTURE STAR: pic.twitter.com/iCdpx8vwKF
— Jack Kelly (@jack_kelly_313) December 17, 2022
Duren is averaging 6.9 points and 7.9 rebounds on 60.4% shooting from the field in 28 games. He led the Pistons in rebounding for a team-high 16th time this season and is averaging 14.2 rebounds per game during his recent five-game stretch.
He also improved his standing among his peers with his performance.
The 13th pick is 26th in the league among all players in total rebounds and is eighth in offensive rebounds (88) and 14th in offensive rebounding percentage (12.5). Of course, he leads all first-year players in each category and has a sizable lead over the rookie class.
He previously joined Howard in more history earlier this season. He became the second-youngest player in history to reach at least 100 rebounds and 15 blocks within their first 14 career games at 19 years and 0 days, trailing only Howard (18 years, 348 days).
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Duren, at 6 feet, 11 inches and 250 pounds, is regarded as one of the most athletic big men in the NBA, and he has been a force inside the paint in a limited role off the bench. He has seemingly endless energy and often presents matchup problems for teams.
He is one of the most productive rookies this season and is doing so on an average of 22.8 minutes per game. Duren seems poised to have quite a rookie season if he can keep up that production with the Pistons.
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