Jalen Duren was one of the top rookies in the NBA this season. In time, his new head coach thinks the 19-year-old can be one of the NBA's top players.
Asked about the many big men on the Pistons' roster, Monty Williams said Wednesday on the Stoney & Jansen Show, "I think Jalen could be a top-10 player in this league."
The youngest player in the NBA this season, Duren quickly proved he belonged. He moved into Detroit's starting lineup in December and wound up
leading all rookies in rebounding while finishing second in double-doubles. He didn't stuff the stat sheet in either of the Pistons' games against the Suns, Williams' former team, but he clearly made an impression on Williams all the same.
"When I look at his talent, how he picks stuff up, the ferocity that he plays with, I think he can be one of the better bigs in this league, for sure, but he can move into a different category based on his growth," Williams said.
Sounds like Williams sees the same things as Pistons GM Troy Weaver, who drafted Duren 13th overall last summer and said after this season, "That’s one guy I won’t ever put a ceiling on."
"You keep watching him, you just see different things. Very smart young man, he’s got tremendous gifts. He may be surprising some, but I had him pretty high on my board and he’s got a chance to be a big-time player," Weaver said.
Related
The rest of Williams' comments on James Wiseman, Isaiah Stewart and Marvin Bagley III are below:
"Wise, he just needs a shot to play free and understand that he’s valuable. We believe that he’s special and that’s what Troy said about him when I got here."
"Stew is just the heart and soul of the team, but he’s better than people think as far as skill is concerned. I’ve been so impressed with our interactions and conversations and seeing him in the gym every day. I can’t wait to get to work with him."
"Bags has just been a high-level, high-talent guy for a while. Still trying to find that consistent path in the league where he’s an everyday guy, but the talent certainly is there."
As for being fired by the Suns a year after winning NBA Coach of the Year and two years after leading them to the NBA Finals, Williams said he was surprised but came to accept it. Moving forward, he'll use his shortcomings in Phoenix as fuel.
"No one wants to lose their job and it stings when it happens, but after I processed it, I realized for me, I didn’t get the job done. I could make a number of excuses about a number of things, but at the end of the day it’s my job to put us in position to win at the highest level and we just didn’t do it. I learned a long time ago from family members and different people that I've been around, but in particular Coach (Tony) Dungy, about no excuses and no explanations.
"When they let me go it allowed for me to evaluate the things I can do to get over the hump. We were two games away in Phoenix from winning a title and those kinds of things drive you."
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