The original Pistons were a barnstorming team founded in 1941, by Fred Zollner. Later, this team represented Zollner's piston-manufacturing plant in the NBL, before it became a major league. During it's early years in the NBA, this team showcased George Yardley, a blue-collar player.
This skinny 6'5" ballplayer from Stanford University was the first man in pro history to score 2,000 points in a season, when he scored 2,001 points in 1957-58, averaging 27.8 ppg. Outside of Yardley, the Pistons had little to boast about.
The best season in Fort Wayne was 1954-1955. They won 43 games and garnered the first of three-straight Western Division first-place finishes. Fort Wayne defeated the Mikan-less Lakers 3 games to one to advance to the Finals, where they would play the Syracuse Nats. Seeing Fred Zollner's Pistons in the Finals was a shock, because Zollner had named ex-referee Charlie Eckman as head coach. He had been selected over many more experienced, highly reputable coaches.
With a potent backcourt consisting of Max Zaslofsky, Andy Phillip and Frankie Brian, and a frontcourt showcasing George Yardley, Larry Foust, Mel Hutchins, and Bob Houbregs, they gave the Nats a run for their money. But in the end, Syracuse pulled it out 4 games to 3. The Pistons again advanced to the finals in 1956--but were soundly beaten by a Philadelphia Warriors team that featured Paul Arizin and Neil Johnston.
The Fort Wayne Pistons are perhaps most known for a game on November 22, 1950. A game where they were playing the dominant Lakers led by George Mikan. The Pistons played a stall, winning 19-18 in the lowest scoring game in NBA history. This game led to the 24-second shot clock--instituted a few years later.
Hoping to increase revenue, Zollner moved his Pistons to Detroit. And from 1956 to 1970, they didn't have a single winning season.
However, times were about to change. In 1967, guard Dave Bing, one of the greatest ever, was NBA Rookie-of-the-Year, giving Piston fans something to cheer about. And in 1970-71, the Pistons again boasted a top rookie-center Bob Lanier. The 6'3" guard from Syracuse and the 6'11" center from St. Bonaventure each scored 15,000 points in Detroit. Now, they had firepower, and were again a winning ballclub. However, the title remained out of their reach.
The early 1980's saw the formation of the greatest era in Pistons history...the "Bad Boys" era. In 1983, Chuck Daly arrived as coach with a focus on defense and hard work. Daly would put together a team with a physical center in Bill Laimbeer, top notch defenders in Dennis Rodman and Joe Dumars, and the consumate leader in Isiah Thomas. The team's bruising play soon earned them a reputation of the "Bad Boys" of the NBA, and in 1989 and 1990, the Pistons won the first two championships in their franchise's history. When Daly left, seemingly so did the magic. During Daly's nine-year tenure at Detroit, the team never won fewer than 46 games, but after his departure in 1992, they managed only 40 wins.
Once again, help would come. In 1994, the team would draft Grant Hill out of Duke. Hill was a forward with extremely promising skills in addition to being a great person off of the court. In 1994-95, Hill was named co-Rookie of the Year with Jason Kidd of the Dallas Mavericks. The following year, the Pistons would reach the playoffs for the first time since the 1991-92 season. They would continue to reach the playoffs in three of the four next seasons, thanks in no small part to the great play of Grant Hill. After the 1999-2000 season, Hill left for Orlando. However, the Pistons would receive help from an unexpected source. Undrafted center Ben Wallace would emerge as a defensive powerhouse, as evidence by two consecutive defense player of the year awards in 2001-02 and 2002-03. In 2001-02, the Pistons would reemerge as a power in the East, going 50-32 thanks to an excellent defense. The following year, they would add Richard Hamilton to the team, and post another fifty-plus win season.
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