Optionality has been at the core of the Detroit Pistons’ principles since Trajan Langdon took over as president of basketball operations two summers ago. It’s contributed to the tug-of-war in contract negotiations between restricted free agent Jalen Duren and the team.

Re-signing the 22-year-old All-NBA center is presumably the last big offseason priority for the Pistons before looking to extend Defensive Player of the Year finalist Ausar Thompson.

But Duren’s contrasting levels of productivity in the regular season versus the playoffs complicate conversations. Duren wants to secure his first long-term, non-rookie deal with a considerable raise from $6.5 million last season to potentially six times that. Detroit wants to make sure it doesn’t handicap itself financially moving forward by overpaying its big man on the heels of postseason struggles.

Duren aside, the Pistons added several new players, lost locker-room staples and re-signed multiple members of last season’s team. We’ll start our breakdown of Detroit’s summer with the new additions.

Acquisitions

So far, the Pistons’ splashiest offseason acquisition was veteran forward John Collins.

Detroit acquired Collins from the LA Clippers along with forward Taurean Prince and guard Garry Harris from the Milwaukee Bucks in a six-team deal on July 8. The trade also sent forward Isaiah Stewart to the Memphis Grizzlies and Caris LeVert to the Bucks and Marcus Sasser to the Dallas Mavericks. The Washington Wizards were also included in the deal.

Langdon also shipped two second-round picks to the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for guard Isaiah Joe. Before those moves, the Pistons drafted and signed Stanford freshman guard Ebuka Okorie and Virginia forward Ugonna Onyenso. Detroit picked up a potential long-term fit at the four, proven shooters off the bench and young talent.

The Pistons brought back veteran guard Kevin Huerter, who was involved in the three-team deal that allowed Detroit to jump from pick No. 28 to pick No. 21 and eventually No. 17, and forward Javonte Green. Green was the last Pistons added to the roster ahead of last regular season, and Huerter was with the team for 25 games before an adductor injury limited his playoff run.

Collins, Prince, Harris and Joe all shot at least 40 percent from beyond the arc last season. Huerter and Green are both at least 36 percent shooters from deep for their careers. And although Okorie is just 19 years old, through his breakout freshman season and NBA Summer League, he’s shown signs of potentially developing into an additional playmaker for Detroit.

These might not have been the biggest moves, but the Pistons improved spacing while picking up a $15 million trade exception for Stewart, shed roughly $42.6 million in salary and got younger.

Players lost

Stewart is the most notable loss for Detroit considering he was the longest-tenured Pistons before his departure and had strong ties to the city. It was a financial decision Detroit felt it had to make with the understanding it wanted Duren back and retaining him would be expensive. Paul Reed being owed $5.6 million next season was an additional consideration.

Factoring Stewart’s $15 million salary for next year and the $30 to 40 million Duren could earn, the Pistons could’ve been handing out $50 to $60 million to just their center room. Detroit opted to ship Stewart, shed salary and elevate Reed’s role after his postseason showing against the Orlando Magic and Cleveland Cavaliers.

Tobias Harris, who’d affectionately been dubbed the “unc” of the Pistons’ locker room and Detroit coach J.B. Bickerstaff’s “safety blanket,” was also a financial casualty. While the Pistons are paying Collins $17 million over three years and Harris signed with the San Antonio Spurs for $15.4 million over two years, Detroit might be getting more for its money long term with the Collins signing.

Sasser and LeVert both stumbled out of the gate with injuries last season and never found their groove off the bench. Sasser had his spot taken by Daniss Jenkins, and while LeVert had a longer leash than Sasser, he never carved out a consistent role. Both were dealt to places that could offer more minutes than Detroit.

In theory, the Pistons swapped Tobias Harris, Stewart, Sasser and LeVert for Collins, Prince, Joe and Gary Harris.

To be determined

Not much has changed since the last time we discussed Duren.

His All-NBA selection makes him eligible for a five-year, $287.1 million contract from Detroit, which equates to an average annual value of $57.4 million. That would put Duren behind only Stephen Curry ($62.6 million), Nikola Jokić ($59 million), Jayson Tatum ($58.5 million), Anthony Davis ($58.5 million), Giannis Antetokounmpo ($58.5 million) and Joel Embiid ($58.1 million).

Not to mention, Duren would be making more than his two-time All-NBA teammate Cade Cunningham ($50.1 million).

It’s difficult to justify that valuation of Duren’s talent after his most recent playoff appearance, hence the Pistons’ reluctance to commit to that much money. Detroit maintains Duren is its top priority. But the longer negotiations continue, the more likely Duren could come back disgruntled — though Duren handled last offseason’s contract disagreement professionally.

Projected depth chart

• Assuming Duren is re-signed, Gary Harris is waived and not including two-way contracts.

Starters: Cunningham, Duncan Robinson, Thompson, Collins, Duren

Second unit: Jenkins, Joe, Ron Holland II, Green, Reed

Depth: Okorie, Chaz Lanier, Huerter, Prince, Tolu Smith

Overall offseason outlook

This evaluation hinges entirely on how Duren’s contract negotiations conclude. If the Pistons can get Duren back on a somewhat favorable deal with yearly salary cap increases and he continues improving, I’d consider this a successful summer for Detroit.

It might be lackluster for those who wanted a “big-swing trade,” but it’s consistent with Langdon’s messaging and preserves the Pistons’ optionality. I’m particularly high on the addition of Joe and am intrigued by the thought of him having a role similar to former Detroit 3-point shooter Malik Beasley.

Beasley played in Bickerstaff’s system alongside Cunningham and set a franchise and career high with 319 made triples. Joe is a better career 3-point shooter than Beasley, plus outside of one season with James Harden, Cunningham will be the best facilitator Joe has played with. Though I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention how helpful Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s gravity is for a 3-point shooter.

I’m curious to see how Collins slots in for Tobias Harris. He’s more of a lob threat with a higher 3-point percentage, but less of an isolation scorer than Harris. Collins’ play — coupled with the growth of guys like Duren, Thompson, Holland and Lanier — could be the deciding factor in how competitive the Pistons can become.

But even the prospect of being a better team than the 60-win group last season signals Detroit made the most of its offseason with a chance to build on its recent success.

Jesse Minter’s inaugural training camp as an NFL head coach officially begins with the Baltimore Ravens’ first full-squad practice on July 29. After 18 John Harbaugh-led training camps, this is being appropriately billed as a new era of Ravens football.

While the influence of Minter and a mostly new coaching staff will be highly scrutinized throughout the summer, there are plenty of other storylines as Baltimore looks to move further beyond last year’s disappointing season and get back into the AFC playoff mix.

There’s a star quarterback again facing contract questions, a rebuilt offensive line, a key defensive player with a still-uncertain future, a new star edge rusher and a host of young players trying to establish themselves as Ravens mainstays.

Let’s rank the 10 biggest storylines of the summer as the Ravens prepare to get back to work.

1. Will Nnamdi Madubuike get medically cleared to play?

The addition of edge rusher Trey Hendrickson should pay immediate dividends. Veteran safety Jaylinn Hawkins looks like a perfect complement to Kyle Hamilton and Malaki Starks. First-round guard Vega Ioane was drafted to be an impact starter from the jump. However, a case could be made that the biggest addition the Ravens could have is a healthy Madubuike.

The two-time Pro Bowler missed all but two games last season because of a significant neck injury. The Ravens have been mostly mum about his status, but general manager Eric DeCosta said last week in an interview with 105.7 The Fan that things are “pointed in the right direction.” That’s the most optimistic comment a team official has given publicly on Madubuike’s status since the injury.

Madubuike had neck surgery in April and hasn’t been cleared medically by team doctors to return to the field. That would be the first step in what’s been a challenging road back for the 28-year-old. If Madubuike gets the green light, the Ravens will then evaluate how much time he needs before he’s on the same schedule as his teammates.

2. What will the Minter effect look like?

It will take months, if not years, to fairly judge the Ravens’ decision to move on from Harbaugh and replace him with one of his former assistants. Yet, Minter’s immediate impact will surely be documented over the next two months, as will the changes he makes in the way the Ravens practice and prepare, and in how he leads the team and handles head-coaching duties.

Some of Minter’s changes were instituted in the offseason workouts. Warmups were different. A “be at your best when your best is required” phase was added at the end of practices. Minter made a change in moving the start of training camp practices to the morning, when they were almost exclusively in the afternoon in recent years.

What remains to be seen is whether camp practices are structured differently, how Minter handles the summer workload for veterans, how much, if any, starters play in the preseason and, generally, how a team loaded with accomplished veterans responds to Minter during the summer grind. Players have been effusive about Minter and the new coaching so far, but training camp brings a different set of circumstances.

3. How will the Lamar Jackson-Declan Doyle partnership evolve?

There is understandable curiosity in how the Ravens’ new offense — and defense, for that matter — will take shape. Training camp, however, probably won’t yield a ton of answers. Minter and Doyle, Baltimore’s first-year play caller, presumably won’t show a lot in open practices and games. They’ll want to keep their regular-season opponents in suspense.

What will be on full display daily is how Jackson and Doyle interact, how Doyle goes about getting his offense ready for the season and how sharp the offense is throughout the summer. Per the team’s media policy, reporters aren’t allowed to say or write tactical info, such as formations and which players are taking reps with which units, but training camp should at least give some clues to how things will look come Sept. 13 when the Ravens open against the Indianapolis Colts.

All indications are that Jackson and the new coaching staff have hit it off and he’s excited about the future of the offense. However, given last year’s tumult, the dynamic between Jackson and Doyle and Minter will be particularly interesting to watch.

4. Can the Ravens extend Jackson and his favorite target, Zay Flowers?

Owner Steve Bisciotti was open earlier this offseason about wanting to extend Jackson as soon as possible. More than six months later, there is still no deal and no indication that one is close, although the Ravens and Jackson have succeeded in keeping any news about the negotiations — or lack thereof — out of the media. Thus, little is known about whether DeCosta and Jackson are negotiating or have any plans to address his contract before the season.

Jackson, whose contract was restructured in March, is signed through 2027. His cap hit next year is a whopping $84.3 million. Each passing month without a new deal will only increase the speculation about Jackson’s future in Baltimore, so a preseason extension would lift a lot of angst for the organization.

As for Flowers, he’s also signed through 2027. He’s said he wants to sign an extension to remain in Baltimore, and the Ravens want that, too. Now, they have to get it done at a time when wide receiver salaries are skyrocketing.

5. How will the restructured offensive line jell?

Free-agent signing John Simpson will be the new starter at left guard. Ioane will take over for Daniel Faalele at right guard. Tyler Linderbaum’s replacement at center will likely be free-agent signing Ethan Pocic. If he’s not ready to return from an Achilles injury, another free-agent addition, Danny Pinter, would probably get the nod. Dwayne Ledford, highly thought of around the league and an assistant DeCosta and Minter coveted during the hiring process, is the new offensive line coach.

All told, the Ravens signed four free-agent offensive linemen, drafted two and then added two more as undrafted free agents. That’s a lot of change, but it also wasn’t surprising. Fixing an offensive line that struggled for much of last year was one of DeCosta’s biggest offseason priorities. Now, it’s up to Ledford to develop the young linemen and get the group to play to its potential.

If Jackson stays healthy and the offensive line is much improved, the Ravens will again have one of the league’s top offenses.

6. Has Tyler Loop put his season-ending miss in Pittsburgh behind him?

The Ravens believe he has, and if they didn’t, they presumably would have signed another kicker to at least serve as competition for Loop in camp. Loop, whose 44-yard miss in Week 18 kept Baltimore out of the playoffs and ended an uneven rookie season, insists his confidence is in a good place and he kicked well in offseason practices.

Still, Loop is a few bad practices or a few preseason misses away from the questions about how the Ravens can rely on him getting even louder. There is probably no Raven, except Jackson, who will be scrutinized more this summer than Loop. It’s an unenviable position to be in, but Loop needs to deliver.

7. Will the defense get its swagger back under Minter?

Baltimore’s decision-makers insist they had no preference between an offensive, defensive or special teams-minded head coach. They wanted the best candidate and the best fit. Hiring a coach who could fix the defense, though, made a great deal of sense, particularly because you already know that if Jackson is healthy, the offense is going to be good.

Minter and defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver have a lot to work with. They also have a lot to fix from last year, when the Ravens defense couldn’t consistently mount a pass rush, had too many breakdowns on the back end and struggled to close games. It was a huge letdown for an organization that was built around a suffocating defense.

Minter’s defensive system has been highly successful wherever he’s been. A defensive resurgence, however, will start with getting middle linebacker Roquan Smith, cornerback Marlon Humphrey and Madubuike (assuming he returns) back to their Pro Bowl form. That, coupled with growth from talented young players like Starks, cornerback Nate Wiggins and edge rusher Mike Green, should make the Ravens formidable again.

8. Can Hendrickson fix Baltimore’s pass rush?

He needn’t absorb the whole burden. Another year of growth from Green is necessary. A healthy return of Madubuike would help in this area. The signing of defensive lineman Calais Campbell should be impactful. Rookie second-round outside linebacker Zion Young will get opportunities to contribute right away. Hendrickson, however, was the biggest piece the Ravens brought in to fill arguably their biggest need.

After pulling out of the Maxx Crosby trade over concerns about his knee, the Ravens pivoted and signed Hendrickson to a four-year, $112 million deal. Hendrickson turns 32 in December, and he’s coming off a season in which he played just seven games and needed hip surgery. He had 13 or more sacks in four of five seasons before that.

Hendrickson made a strong impression on the coaching staff in the offseason program. Much, however, will be asked of him from a production and leadership standpoint, and his staying healthy and having a strong camp would be a great first step.

9. Are there any more veteran roster additions forthcoming?

Last week’s Pocic agreement was a typical Ravens move, acquiring a well-respected veteran who fills a roster hole late in the offseason at a modest price. DeCosta is always a threat to bring in a veteran during training camp, too.

There are plenty of available quality free agents who could theoretically help the Ravens at positions where they’re thin. The available free-agent wide receivers include Stefon Diggs, DeAndre Hopkins, Deebo Samuel and Keenan Allen. Kyle Van Noy, Jadeveon Clowney, Haason Reddick and Von Miller head the list of edge rushers looking for work.

Baltimore’s roster looks mostly set for now, but given the team’s history, it would be foolish to rule out more additions.

10. Is there room for a rookie undrafted free agent on the 53-man roster?

The Ravens take a ton of pride in their ability to find and develop quality undrafted free agents, which is why this is always a notable question this time of year. The Ravens have had a rookie free agent make their regular-season roster in 20 of the past 21 years. One of the biggest storylines emerging from last year’s cutdown day in Baltimore was that three undrafted free agents, inside linebacker Jay Higgins and defensive backs Keyon Martin and Reuben Lowery, made the team.

This is another year where the Ravens don’t have a plethora of unaccounted for roster spots, and they have 18 undrafted free agents bidding for the precious few of them. The undrafted free agents to watch include offensive tackle Diego Pounds (Mississippi), quarterbacks Diego Pavia (Vanderbilt) and Joe Fagnano (Connecticut), and defensive back Lardarius Webb Jr.