Jalen Duren makes Pistons history with nearly perfect game

Detroit Pistons center Jalen Duren (0) celebrates in the second half against the New Orleans Pelicans. Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

Jalen Duren makes Pistons history with nearly perfect performance

By Mike J. Asti | Last updated Mar 26, 2026 11:02 PM ET

With Cade Cunningham out, Jalen Duren answered the call and stepped up in leading the Detroit Pistons to a win on Thursday night.

Allowing the Pistons to stay secure at the top of the Eastern Conference standings, Duren put up historic numbers as Detroit beat the New Orleans Pelicans 129-108.

Duren, who has been enjoying the best season of his career to date, scored exactly 30 points in 31 minutes. He even did it while hitting 10-of-12 shots from the field for a staggering 83.3% shooting night.

Jalen Duren put up an almost perfect performance

Adding in 10 rebounds and seven assists, Duren, an All-Star for the firs time this year, became the first player in Pistons franchise history to ever record 30 points, 10 boards and at least five assists while doing it with a shooting clip of 80% or above.

Jalen Duren stuffed the stat sheet in Detroit's win!

30 PTS (10-12 FGM)
10 REB
7 AST
2 STL
2 BLK

He becomes the first player in Pistons franchise history to record at least 30 PTS, 10 REB, and 5 AST while shooting 80% or better from the field in a game pic.twitter.com/EPrVCyoeMq
— NBA (@NBA) March 27, 2026

So Duren, not MVP candidate Cunningham, or any legend of the past like Grant Hill or Isiah Thomas, will go down in history as posting one of the most complete and efficient performances by a Piston.

Jalen Duren has taken his game to another level this season

And at only 22 years old, Detroit's first-round pick from the 2022 NBA Draft seems to only be getting better with every game, let alone season, of his career. After averaging 11.8 points and 10.3 rebounds in 78 games last season, Duren now has a line with 19.5 points, 10.6 rebounds, 1.8 helpers and shooting an eye-popping 64.3% from the field in 63 games so far in the 2025-26 campaign.

Duren's play gave Detroit their 53rd win of the season, moving their record to 53-20 and a 4.5 game lead as the East's No. 1 seed.

Mike J. Asti

Mike Asti is an experienced media personality and journalist with a vast resume and skillset, most notably from time with TribLIVE Radio and WPXI-TV. Asti now serves as the Managing Editor of WV Sports Now, where he leads the coverage of WVU sports. He has also covered the Steelers, Penguins, Pirates and other teams within the Pittsburgh market

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