Latest Detroit Pistons News

    Detroit Pistons Franchise Information

    Have a read on below at some quick stats and facts on the Detroit Pistons to get you started: 

    Established:1941
    Stadium:Little Caesars Arena
    Colours:Royal blue, red, chrome, navy blue & white
    Hall of Famers:Andy Phillip, Dave DeBusschere, Bob Houbregs, Bobby McDermott, Dave Bing, Harry Gallatin, Bob Lanier, Walt Ballamy, Dick McGuire, Buddy Jeannette, George Yardley, Bailey Howell, Bob McAdoo, Isiah Thomas, Joe Dumars, Adrian Dantley, Dennis Rodman, Nathaniel Clifton, Allen Iverson, Tracy McGrady, Grant Hill & Chuck Cooper
    Hall of Fame Coaches:Chuck Daly & Larry Brown
    Rivals:Chicago Bulls, Boston Celtics & Los Angeles Lakers
    Legends:Isiah Thomas, Joe Dumars, Ben Wallace, Chauncey Billups, Richard ‘Rip’ Hamilton, Bill Laimbeer, Dennis Rodman, Bob Lanier, George Yardley & Tayshaun Prince
    Retired Numbers:1, 2, 3, 4, 10, 11, 15, 16, 21, 32 & 40
    Conference: Eastern Conference
    Division:Central Division
    NBA Championships3: 1989, 1990 & 2004

    Detroit Pistons History

    The Detroit Pistons started in 1941 as the Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons, named after owner Fred Zollner and his piston manufacturing company. The team played in the National Basketball League and won two NBL championships before joining the Basketball Association of America in 1948, becoming the Fort Wayne Pistons. 

    In the 1949 offseason, Zollner brokered the deal between the NBL and BAA to form the NBA, which started in the 1949-50 season. The NBA turned out to be a positive for the Pistons, who made the playoffs for the first time in that season. Fort Wayne made the playoffs for five straight years without making the NBA Finals, but drafted 1953 Rookie of the Year, Don Meineke and George Yardley. 

    Accusations were thrown that Pistons’ players were purposefully throwing games, including 1955 when the team made the Finals for the first time. In game seven of the Finals against the Syracuse Nationals, the Pistons had a 41-24 lead before allowing the Nationals to come back into the game. 

    Two turnovers and a foul that were unnecessary and seemingly unforced in the last 18 seconds of the game cost the Pistons a chance to win the game, strengthening the claims. Detroit would overcome the claims and make the Finals for a second straight season, but fell to the Philadelphia Warriors. 

    After the 1956-57 season, the Pistons moved to Detroit, with Fort Wayne being too small for the franchise to be profitable. In the team’s first season at their new home, Yardley became the first player in NBA history to score 2,000 points in a single season. 

    Detroit made the playoffs in their first six seasons in the city, but only won two playoff series in this stretch, never making the Finals. After the 1962-63 season, the Pistons only made the playoffs once over the following ten seasons, but during this time the team drafted 1967 Rookie of the Year, Dave Bing, and added Bob Lanier. 

    The year of 1974 saw the Pistons return to the playoffs for the first time in six seasons, with Lanier winning the All Star Game MVP and Ray Scott winning Coach of the Year, but Detroit was unable to overcome the Chicago Bulls in the first round. 

    Detroit would make the playoffs the next three years as well but only win one playoff series in 1976, unable to utilize the players they had to make a successful playoff run. The Pistons then saw six straight years of missing the playoffs, including a 16-66 season in 1980, but fortunes turned when Isiah Thomas was drafted in 1981, Vinnie Johnson and Bill Laimbeer were acquired in trades and Chuck Daly was hired as coach. 

    Thomas won the 1984 All Star Game MVP while leading the team back to the playoffs. They would lose in the first round but returned the next year making it to the second round and facing the defending champion Boston Celtics. Detroit would lose the series but had instilled confidence in themselves and their ability, boosted by drafting Joe Dumars in the offseason.

    Thomas won his second All Star Game MVP in 1986 and the Pistons, again, lost in the first round, causing Daly to focus on the team’s defence, drafting John Salley and Dennis Rodman, while trading for Adrian Dantley. 

    The ‘Bad Boy’ Pistons were born, with a defensive tenacity that took them to the 1987 Eastern Conference Finals, facing the Celtics. With the series tied 2-2, a late costly turnover by Thomas gave the Celtics the win, and despite winning game six, Detroit was unable to overcome the experienced Celtics in game seven. 

    The Pistons were fueled by their elimination at the hands of the Celtics, winning a franchise record 54 wins the following season whilst winning their first Central Division title. Detroit beat the Washington Bullets and Chicago Bulls in the first two rounds of the playoffs, setting up a second straight Eastern Conference Finals match up with the Celtics. 

    The Pistons’ defence was too much for Boston, beating them in six games to advance to their first NBA Finals since 1956, their first since moving to Detroit.  The Pistons had a 3-2 lead over the Los Angeles Lakers, led by Magic Johnson, James Worthy and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, but an ankle injury to Thomas proved costly. 

    Despite his injury, Thomas scored 25 points in the third quarter of game six, an NBA record, but the Lakers tied the series 3-3 before going on to win the decider. The Pistons traded Dantley for Mark Aguirre, and the Bad Boys went on to smash the previous years win total record, winning 63 games and finishing on top of the Eastern Conference for the first time. 

    Detroit swept the Celtics and the Milwaukee Bucks before defeating the Chicago Bulls 4-2 in the Eastern Conference Finals to set up a second straight match up with the Lakers in the Finals. Detroit were able to remove any doubts, sweeping the Lakers with Dumars winning Finals MVP in the franchise’s first Championship. 

    Detroit kept their tenacity the following season, with Rodman winning 1990 Defensive Player of the Year and the Pistons finishing on top of the East again. After defeating the Indiana Pacers and New York Knicks in the opening two rounds, Detroit came up against Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and the Chicago Bulls again. 

    Detroit was pushed to the brink of elimination, but defeated the Bulls in the decider to advance to their third straight NBA Finals. Facing Clyde Drexler and the Portland Trail Blazers, Detroit went to Portland for games 3, 4 and 5 with the series 1-1 and playing at a venue they hadn’t won at since 1974. 

    The Pistons overcame this and won all three games on the road, becoming the first team to do this in the Finals, winning their second straight Championship, with Thomas being named Finals MVP. 

    A fierce rivalry was brewing with the Chicago Bulls, with members of both teams talking trash in the media and constant hard fouls and bickering whenever the two played each other. 

    After Rodman had won his second straight Defensive Player of the Year and the Pistons made light work of the Atlanta Hawks and Celtics in the first two rounds, the two faced each other in the Eastern Conference Finals for the third straight season. 

    Detroit were swept by Chicago, walking off the court in game four before the game was over, refusing to shake hands with the victorious Bulls, sparking Jordan to comment on this and the fans’ dislike towards their attitude and playing style. 

    A first round loss to the Knicks the following season saw Detroit enter a rebuilding phase by trading key players with Laimbeer and Thomas retiring and Daly stepping down as head coach. 

    A 20-62 record in 1994 allowed the Pistons to draft Grant Hill, who went on to win 1995 Rookie of the Year. This was still a down period for the team, only going to the playoffs four times in the first seven years after drafting Hill, not winning a series in any of those years and going through five coaches in an eight year period. 

    Hill wanted to leave after the 2000 season and Detroit was able to sign-and-trade for Ben Wallace and would eventually hire Rick Carlise as head coach, who helped turn the team around. 

    The 2002 season saw Wallace win Defensive Player of the Year, Carlisle win Coach of the Year, Corliss Williamson win Sixth Man of the Year and the Pistons win 50 games on the way to their first division title in 12 years. The offensive firepower of Jerry Stackhouse allowed the team to win their first playoff series since 1991, over the Toronto Raptors before falling to the Boston Celtics. 

    Chauncey Billups was signed, Richard ‘Rip’ Hamilton was acquired via trade and Tayshaun Prince was drafted in the 2002 offseason, retooling the Pistons with the right pieces to make another run at the title.

    Wallace won a second straight Defensive Player of the Year and the new pieces began to click, with Detroit making it to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in 12 years, but were swept by the New Jersey Nets. Carlisle was fired as a result of this and Larry Brown was hired in his place. 

    Detroit were poised for another shot at the title in 2004, and the acquisition of Rasheed Wallace gave the Pistons versatile big and another offensive threat, that helped put them over the edge. Detroit beat the Bucks, Nets and Pacers on the way to setting up a Finals clash with the Lakers, much like when they won their first NBA Championship. 

    The Lakers had won three straight titles in the last four seasons and led by Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant made a tough task for the Pistons, but were able to overcome their longtime foes, winning 4-1 to claim their third NBA Championship, with Billups being named Finals MVP. 

    The 2004-05 season is remembered for the ‘Malice at the Palace’, where a one of the biggest brawls involving fans in sports history broke out between the Pacers and Pistons, resulting in multiple suspensions being handed out and public backlash. 

    Despite this, the Pistons remained dominant, Wallace won a third Defensive Player of the Year, and Detroit made the Finals again but were unable to overcome the Spurs dynasty, losing in a tough seven game series.

    The 2005-06 season saw Detroit have one of the best in sports history, starting 37-5, having four starters and the coach, Flip Saunders, named to the All Star Game, Wallace winning his fourth Defensive Player of the Year award in five seasons and the team winning a franchise record 64 games. 

    After defeating the Bucks in the opening round, the Pistons came up against an emerging LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers who pushed Detroit to a tough fought seven games, with the experienced Piston outfit prevailing. They would then face O’Neal, who had moved to the Miami Heat and Dwyane Wade in the East Finals, losing to the Heat who would go on to win the Championship. 

    Despite losing Ben Wallace to the Bulls in the offseason, Detroit finished on top of the East for the second straight season in 2007, with the signing of Chris Webber during the season being a turning point. 

    The Pistons would go on to beat the Magic and the Bulls on the way to another match up with James and the Cavs, this time in the East Finals. James emerged as one of the best players in the league in this series, scoring the Cavaliers’ final 25 points in a game five victory with Detroit unable to recover, falling 4-2. 

    Detroit continued their winning ways in 2008, finishing second in the East, defeating the Sixers and Magic on the way to their sixth straight Eastern Conference Finals appearance. Facing their old rivals, the Boston Celtics, the Pistons were eliminated in six games and would mark the end of an era in Detroit. 

    Saunders would be fired as coach, Billups would be traded, bringing back Allen Iverson, and injuries would ruin the Pistons’ season. Detroit would just make the playoffs but be swept by the Cavs, with Iverson leaving as a free agent in the offseason. 

    Detroit missed the playoffs for six straight seasons following Iverson’s departure, but the emergence of Andre Drummond in the 2015-16 season helped the team back to the playoffs, but were swept by the Cavs in the first round. 

    The Pistons traded for Blake Griffin in the 2017-18 season, pairing him with Drummond in an attempt to make a dominant big man duo, but the Pistons failed to make the playoffs that season, were swept by the Bucks in 2019.

    They also failed to make the playoffs in this most recent season, with Griffin only playing 18 games and Drummond being traded to the Cavaliers. 

    A look towards the future was evident with three picks in the first round of the 2020 draft, the signing a young emerging star, Jerami Grant, in free agency and buying out Griffin’s contract during the season. There are going to be some tough seasons for Pistons fans at the moment though, evident in their 20-52 record, second worst in the league.

    The 2021-22 season was another rough one for the Detroit Pistons. As they finished the year with a record of 23-59 and missed the playoffs for the fourth straight season.

    Expert 2022-23 Picks & Preview on Detroit Pistons

    If you are a fan of the Detroit Pistons, then you know that the only thing that matters right now is how they are expected to perform in the 2022-23 season. Do the Detroit Pistons have the star power to make it all the way to the playoffs and win The Finals in 2023?

    Have a read on below at SportsTips expert picks & preview on the Detroit Pistons:

    Front Office

    Dwane Casey is the head coach of the Detroit Pistons, and this upcoming 2022-23 National Basketball Association season will be his fifth season in charge of the franchise. He has been coaching in the league for fifteen years overall and over the course of his coaching career he has made the playoffs six times. Before coaching the Pistons, he was previously the head coach of the Toronto Raptors and Minnesota Timberwolves. His overall record in the regular season currently sits at 477-505. While his overall playoff record is currently sitting at 21-34. 

    Troy Weaver is the general manager of the Detroit Pistons and he has held that position within the franchise since 2020. He used to be the vice president of basketball operations for the Oklahoma City Thunder. This upcoming 2022-23 National Basketball Association season will be his third season as the decision maker for the franchise. 

    Key Players

    Cade Cunningham is the best player on this team’s roster and he is sure to make a huge impact during the 2022-23 National Basketball Association season. This upcoming season will be his second season in the National Basketball Association. Last season he put up some impressive numbers as he averaged around 17 and a half points per game. He set up his teammates as well as he averaged around five and a half assists per game. He also managed to do some work on the boards as he averaged around five and a half rebounds per game. 

    The second key player on this roster is Kemba Walker and this upcoming season will be his 12th season in the National Basketball Association, however it will be his first season with the Detroit Pistons. Last season he put up some impressive numbers as he averaged around 12 points per game. He set up his teammates as well as he averaged around four assists per game. He also managed to do some work on the boards as he averaged around three rebounds per game.

    Breakout Player

    Jaden Ivey will be the breakout player on this team’s roster and he is sure to make a huge impact during the 2022-23 National Basketball Association season. He is a former fifth overall pick in the 2022 National Basketball Association Draft. This upcoming season will be his rookie season in the National Basketball Association after attending Purdue. Last season he put up some impressive numbers in his final year in college as he averaged around 17 points per game. 

    He set up his teammates as well as he averaged around three assists per game. He also managed to do some work on the boards as he averaged around three rebounds per game. He put in some work on the defensive end of the court as well, averaging around one steal per game and one block per game. His list of accolades is impressive as he is a former all-American.

    Detroit Pistons Betting & Odds Preview 2022-23

    The Detroit Pistons campaign during the 2021-22 National Basketball Association season went about as you would’ve expected. They finished the year with a record of 23-59 and in fifth place of the Central Division. The Pistons have a ton of young players who create a solid core and they should be more competitive this season. 

    There is a lot of optimism surrounding the franchise heading into the 2022-23 National Basketball Association season. If they want to improve or keep up their current level of play they will certainly need a ton of production from their stars over the course of the 2022-23 National Basketball Association season. The most important thing in any season is how a team starts out of the gate, and then how they look when the all-star break approaches. 

    In the National Basketball Association, a lot can change over a single off-season. It will be interesting to see how their offseason moves translate onto the basketball court over the course of the 2022-23 National Basketball Association season. Based on their odds to win some hardware headed into the season it is clear how the oddsmakers in Las Vegas feel about them heading into the year. 

    Their odds to bring home the Central Division championship this season currently sit at +15000 heading into the 2022-23 National Basketball Association season, which puts them fourth in the Central Division out of five teams. 

    While their odds to win the Eastern Conference currently sit at +25000 heading into the 2022-23 National Basketball Association season, which puts them 13th in the Eastern Conference out of 15 teams. Their overall odds to bring home the championship are currently sitting at +50000 heading into the 2022-23 season, as they rank 23rd out of all 30 teams in the National Basketball Association.

    Detroit Pistons FAQs

    Still got some burning questions about the Detroit Pistons? Well, we have answered some of the most common questions people have, hopefully you will find the answer you are looking for below! 

    Where do the Detroit Pistons play?

    The Detroit Pistons play their home games at the Little Caesars Arena. 

    Who owns the Detroit Pistons?

    Tom Gores is the ownership group of the Detroit Pistons after purchasing the team for $325M in 2011.

    Have the Detroit Pistons won an NBA Championship?

    The Detroit Pistons have won 3 NBA Championships, in 1989, 1990 and 2004.

    Who is the Detroit Pistons coach?

    Dwane Casey is the coach of the Detroit Pistons. Casey was hired in the 2018 offseason after being head coach of the Toronto Raptors. 

    Do the Detroit Pistons play tonight?

    Are you wondering if the Detroit Pistons are playing tonight? Well, SportsTips has all the details you need about upcoming Detroit Pistons games! Make sure you check this page at the top for all the details you are looking for.

    What is the Detroit Pistons record?

    The Detroit Pistons had a 23-59 win-loss record for the 2021-22 NBA season. 

    Did the Detroit Pistons win last night?

    Fans of the Detroit Pistons are all wanting to know if they won the game last night. You can find more information in relation to the team’s recent form in games on the page at the top.

    How much are the Detroit Pistons worth?

    According to Forbes Magazine, the Detroit Pistons are worth $1.58 billion.

    Do The Pistons play tonight?

    Like a lot of things in the NBA, things change pretty quickly. So, if you are looking for more information about who the Detroit Pistons play tonight, you have come to the right place. We have all this information for you in detail, you can find these details for upcoming games at the top of the page.

    How to watch the Detroit Pistons?

    You can watch the Detroit Pistons on TV channels like ESPN, ABC, TNT, NBA TV or Fox Sports GO or subscribe to NBA League Pass. 

    Will the Detroit Pistons make the playoffs this year?

    The Detroit Pistons did not make the playoffs in the 2021-22 season after finishing 14th in the East with a 23-59 record. 

    When do the Detroit Pistons play?

    Detroit Pistons fans are always looking for more information about when their team plays the next game. For all the information you have been craving and more, be sure to check the top of this page. Here at SportsTips, we list all the information you need like the tip off time, location of the game and the all important NBA odds.

    Where did the Detroit Pistons finish the season?

    The Detroit Pistons finished the 2021-22 NBA season in 14th in the Eastern Conference. 

    How many games did the Detroit Pistons win?

    The Detroit Pistons won 23 games during the 2021-22 NBA season.