Jalen Duren led the NBA in true shooting at .688 and ranked third in win shares

DETROIT — Oct. 15, 2026 — Jalen Duren did not lead the NBA in scoring or rebounding in 2025-26. He led it in how efficiently those points went up. Per Basketball-Reference, the Pistons center finished first in true shooting percentage at .688, ahead of Mark Williams (.680), Deandre Ayton (.676), Neemias Queta (.674) and Nikola Jokić (.670).

True shooting folds in two-pointers, threes and free throws. Duren attempted zero threes all season. He shot .650 from the field (fourth in the league) and .747 from the line while averaging 19.5 points and 10.5 rebounds in 70 games, so the rate was not a low-usage outlier. His usage rate was 23.6.

Third in win shares, too

Efficiency showed up in the win-credit columns. Duren ranked third in the NBA in win shares (11.0) and third in win shares per 48 minutes (.266), trailing only Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (15.2 and .323) and Jokić (14.9 and .316). Kevin Durant (10.7) and Amen Thompson (10.3) were next in total win shares.

His offensive win shares (7.2) and defensive win shares (3.8) both ranked among the league’s better big-man lines. Offensive rating sat at 134.1, fifth behind Moussa Diabaté (139.5), Queta (138.4), Jimmy Butler (135.9) and Williams (135.1). Player efficiency rating was 26.1, sixth in the league.

Back-to-back elite rates

The .688 mark was not a one-year spike. In 2024-25 Duren posted a .703 true shooting percentage, sixth-highest of any qualified season on Basketball-Reference’s all-time list. The 2025-26 figure ranks 21st all-time. He followed a quieter 11.8-point season with a jump to 19.5 points on a heavier free-throw diet (4.6 makes on 6.1 attempts per game) while the Pistons finished 60-22 and first in the NBA.

Voters noticed. Duren made his first All-Star team and was named to the All-NBA Third Team. The club account marked the night this way:

DAWG 💪

Jalen Duren is All-NBA Third Team. pic.twitter.com/8id0U96pDp

— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) May 24, 2026

A numbers package from the season put the same line in video form:

Jalen Duren last season:

19.5 PPG
10.5 RPG (3.8 OFF)
2.0 APG
65.0% FG
28.2 MPG
70 GP

• All-Star + All-NBA 3rd Team
• Highest FG% with 15+ PPG

He’s still only 22 pic.twitter.com/on5iNosLwb

— Hoop Muse (@HoopMuse) October 3, 2026

What the rate means entering 2026-27

Centers who clear .680 true shooting with mid-20s usage are rare. Duren did it while ranking third in the league in estimated wins and helping Detroit to the East’s best record. The free-throw volume and interior finishing are the levers; keep those, and the true-shooting crown is not a fluke. The regular season opens Oct. 20.