NBA training camps open with Leonard in Toronto, Duren absent and Ball in Minnesota
Kawhi Leonard joins the Raptors' crowded wing rotation as the Detroit Pistons face a contract standoff with Jalen Duren.
NBA training camps opened across the league Tuesday, with Kawhi Leonard's arrival in Toronto creating a logjam on the wing and the Detroit Pistons dealing with an absent Jalen Duren amid a contract standoff.
Leonard is now a member of the Toronto Raptors, a move that presents positives but also a problem for head coach Darko Rajakovic.
"Obviously, given Leonard’s talents on both sides of the floor, head coach Darko Rajakovic will want to play Leonard as much as possible, but there will be times when he must sit," Sportsnet reported.
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The Raptors benefited from internal growth last season from players such as Ja’Kobe Walter, R.J. Barrett and Collin Murray-Boyles, and rookie Allen Graves is also expected to compete for minutes after a stellar Summer League.
All of these players are versatile wings who can play a little bigger or smaller depending on matchups, creating a challenge for the coaching staff to allocate minutes, particularly when Leonard is off the floor.
In Detroit, Duren did not attend the Pistons' media-day festivities after he and his agent, Chafie Fields, rejected Detroit’s reported five-year, $200-million contract extension.
Duren has until Thursday to sign an extension, or he will be entered into a one-year, $9.6-million qualifying offer.
The impasse appears to stem from Duren's spectacular regular season, where he made his first all-star team and earned an All-NBA Third Team selection, averaging 19.5 points and 10.5 rebounds per game.
However, he regressed in the playoffs, averaging 10.2 points and 8.5 rebounds in 14 games and being benched at times for poor play.
By making an All-NBA team last season, Duren is eligible for a max extension worth $287 million over five years from the Pistons.
If he takes the qualifying offer, he would play out the season before entering unrestricted free agency next summer, where he could command a four-year, $189 million max contract with a different team.
Duren will supposedly be welcomed back to the Pistons no matter the result of his standoff, but trade rumours could intensify if he takes the qualifying offer.
The Philadelphia 76ers enter camp with high expectations after adding LeBron James and Jaylen Brown to a team that already had Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and V.J. Edgecombe.
"More than any other team, the Sixers are a squad that must be seen to get any sense of who they are and how they might work," Sportsnet reported.
In a surprising off-season move, LaMelo Ball was traded from the Charlotte Hornets to the Minnesota Timberwolves in a four-team blockbuster.
Ball is coming off his best season as a pro, averaging 20.1 points and 7.1 assists per game, but his step up in maturity was not enough for Charlotte.
He will now play next to Anthony Edwards in Minnesota, a move that could help save Edwards for the playoffs or create more work for him.
His departure could mean more time for Kon Knueppel and Brandon Miller to operate with the Hornets.
The return of several star guards from injury will be a welcome sight in pre-season, including Tyrese Haliburton, Kyrie Irving, Damian Lillard and Fred VanVleet.
All four missed all of last season and will be counted on to help their respective teams.
There will be pressure on Haliburton to be the engine for an Indiana Pacers team that went from one win away from winning it all in 2025 to bottoming out without him last season.
A highly touted rookie class also enters the league, including AJ Dybantsa of the Washington Wizards, Darryn Peterson of the Utah Jazz, Cameron Boozer of the Memphis Grizzlies and Caleb Wilson of the Chicago Bulls.
Duren's contract situation remains unresolved as the Pistons' training camp begins.
With files from Sportsnet