Detroit Pistons Tickets

The Detroit Pistons are a team in the National Basketball Association based in the Detroit metropolitan area.

Franchise history:

From Fort Wayne to Detroit
The franchise was founded as the Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons. Owner Fred Zollner's Zollner Corporation was a foundry. In 1948, the team became the Fort Wayne Pistons. In 1949, Fred Zollner brokered the formation of the National Basketball Association from the BAA and the NBL at his kitchen table. From that point on, the Fort Wayne Pistons competed in the NBA. The Fort Wayne Pistons were a very popular franchise and appeared in the NBA Finals in 1955 and 1956.

1980s
The Pistons stumbled their way out of the 1970s and into the 1980s, beginning with a 16?66 record in 1979-80 and following up with a 21?61 record in 1980-81. The 1979-80 teams lost its last 14 games of the season which comprised a then-NBA record losing streak of 21 games.

The franchise's fortunes finally began to turn in 1981, when it drafted point guard Isiah Thomas from Indiana University. In early 1982, the Pistons acquired center Bill Laimbeer in a trade from the Cleveland Cavaliers and guard Vinnie Johnson from the Seattle Super Sonics. The three would remain together for a decade.

1990s
Detroit Pistons logo 1996?2001.The Pistons successfully defended their title in 1990. The Pistons cruised through the first two rounds of the playoffs before playing a tough Eastern Conference Finals series against Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls. The Pistons and Bulls split the first six games before the Pistons finished the series with a decisive 93?74 victory in Game 7. The Pistons faced the Portland Trail Blazers. After splitting the first two games at the Palace, the Pistons went to Portland, where they had not won a game since 1974, to play Games 3, 4 and 5.

2000-2007: Return to championship contention
After being swept by the Miami Heat in the 2000 playoffs, Joe Dumars was hired as the team's president of basketball operations. He quickly faced what appeared to be a setback for the franchise, as Grant Hill elected to leave the team for the Orlando Magic. However, Dumars managed to work a sign and trade with Orlando that brought the Pistons Ben Wallace and Chucky Atkins in exchange for Hill. Both quickly entered the Pistons' starting lineup.

The Pistons' 2004-05 season was marked by a major controversy, as well as distracting issues involving Larry Brown. In the season's first month, a Pacers-Pistons brawl erupted, one of the largest fan-player incidents in the history of American sports Brown was forced to leave the team. The Pistons bought out his contract soon after the 2005 NBA Finals. Brown was promptly named head coach of the New York Knicks, and the Pistons hired Flip Saunders, formerly of the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The Pistons opened the 2007 NBA Playoffs with a 4-0 victory over the Orlando Magic, their first playoff series sweep since 1990. The team advanced to face the Chicago Bulls. The Pistons overcame a 19-point deficit to win Game 3, 81-74. Chicago avoided elimination by winning Games 4 and 5, but the Pistons closed out the series, 95,85, in Game 6. They advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals for the fifth consecutive time one short of the NBA record set by the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1980s. In the Eastern Conference Finals, the Pistons won games 1 and 2, but lost 4 in a row to the Cavaliers.

The Pistons traded Carlos Delfino to the Toronto. In the 2007 NBA Draft the Pistons selected Rodney Stuckey and Arron Afflalo. They also re-signed Chauncey Billups to a long-term contract, as well as Amir Johnson and McDyess.