Monday is the deadline for rookie extensions to get done ahead of the 2025-26 season. The Detroit Pistons should be hyper-focused on making sure they can get a deal done for both Jalen Duren and Jaden Ivey.
This past season, the Pistons did the unthinkable and improved their win total by 30 games from the previous season. It was one of the most dramatic single season improvements we've seen in recent NBA history. In order for them to keep their current trajectory moving forward and ensure they remain one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference for years to come, locking down these extensions is going to be absolutely crucial.
The complicating factor here is injuries, especially for Ivey. He was clearly taking a pretty dramatic step forward last season, up until he was forced to miss the second half of the season with a fibula injury. I think Pistons fans believe he's pretty clearly a fantastic complimentary piece alongside Cade Cunningham, but the question is going to be how much Detroit's front office [takes into consideration his injury](https://pistonpowered.com/not-even-training-camp-pistons-already-have-jaden-ivey-problem).
Detroit has to extend Jalen Duren and Jaden Ivey
------------------------------------------------
As it pertains to Duren, the Pistons are reportedly cautious on offering too high of a number to a big man. Of course, this has classically been the type of player to incur injury issues over the years, so there's some concern there as well. Jalen has been [making improvements in his own right](https://pistonpowered.com/jalen-duren-suddenly-no-choice-but-make-transformative-leap), but if you think about it from the perspective of the front office, it's understandable why there may be a little bit of hesitancy here.
Some are skeptical the extensions will be hashed out before the Monday deadline, but I actually wouldn't be surprised to see it happen. I think when push comes to shove, Detroit knows what kind of position they're currently in. They're finally on a trajectory to being a consistent winning team for the first time in two decades, and I don't see them squandering the opportunity to have in front of them.
It's pretty obvious that the Pistons need to retain consistency and bring back as much of their core from this past season with how wide open the East is right now. It makes sense for negotiations to have gone this long without a resolution. But if I were a Pistons fan, I'd feel optimistic that something would get done any day now.