With the NBA All Star break now upon us, it’s time for Detroit sports fans to take a long, hard look at themselves in the mirror.
Dear fellow Detroit sports fan,
Hello, my name is Brenden Welper. I’m a contributor here at PistonPowered.
Like many of you, I carry a deep passion for the teams that represent the Motor City. Detroit is fortunate enough to have a franchise in each of the four (NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL) major sports leagues. It’s been that way for 61 years.
But one team has been largely forgotten in the last decade – the Detroit Pistons. And there are many factors as to why that is.
The Pistons haven’t won a playoff game since May 26, 2008. Forward Antonio McDyess (21 points, 16 rebounds) led Detroit to a 94-75 victory over the Boston Celtics in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals at The Palace of Auburn Hills.
Boy, how times have changed.
Since that day, the Pistons have gone through seven head coaches, two general managers, three owners (technically) and two arenas. They have appeared in the playoffs only twice. Both of those playoff berths, 2009 and 2016, resulted in the Pistons getting swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers.
When your team is that pitiful, you can’t blame fans for not showing up. However, that’s not an excuse anymore.
The problem
The 2017-18 Pistons are a lot of things, but they certainly aren’t pitiful. Yet their porous attendance seems to suggest otherwise. According to ESPN, the Pistons are drawing 17,139 fans per game, good enough for 19th overall. But that metric only represents the number of tickets sold, not how many people have entered the building.
A more telling stat calculates the percentage each arena is filled to its capacity. Little Caesars Arena holds 20,491 fans for a basketball game. The Pistons are filling just 81.6 percent of LCA on average. That puts Detroit at 29th in the NBA.
This might be the worst crowd of the season. pic.twitter.com/qcDqYw9mfb
— Brian Chapman (@bchapsports) February 15, 2018
The empty red seats quickly became an eyesore. So much so, that the Pistons recently put a few thousand seat covers throughout the lower bowl. The covers are black with a white version of Art Van’s logo placed in the center.
Detroit fans should be ashamed. We’re better than this.
Or at least, I thought we were.
Star power
Detroit currently sits at 28-29 on the season. Andre Drummond is having his best year as a pro, averaging 15.1 points, 15.7 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game. He was named an All Star for the second time in his career.
If that wasn’t enough, Stan Van Gundy traded for a legitimate superstar in Blake Griffin. When was the last time a player of this magnitude, in their prime, wore a Pistons uniform? You’d have to go back to Grant Hill. By pairing Griffin with Drummond, Detroit boasts one of the more imposing frontcourts in the NBA.
Griffin’s debut on Feb. 1 wasn’t even a sellout. Only 17,481 people bothered to show up. In any other market, that would’ve been the hottest ticket in town.
While there are plenty of other Pistons worth noting, Drummond and Griffin are the only names that would appeal to the casual fan. But for some reason, they’re not.
Parking, prices, and another “Palace”
Since the Pistons left the cavernous Silverdome in 1988, they’ve played in two state-of-the-art facilities. The Palace was revolutionary in terms of stadium design. So it seems fitting that the Pistons’ new home continues that legacy.
LCA is an architectural marvel.
Walking around the concourse, while gawking in amazement, is worth the price of admission alone. You could spend an entire evening in that building without realizing there’s a game in progress. There’s that much to explore.
It’s not the economy. LCA’s other tenant, the Detroit Red Wings of the NHL, are third in average attendance. Red Wings’ tickets are notoriously more expensive, yet the product is relatively the same. They’re currently one game under .500, just like the Pistons.
I’ve heard people tell me that the parking is too expensive, and I can’t help but laugh. Parking is free at the MGM Grand Detroit. The eight-story garage is a five minute walk to the arena.
Let’s stay on the subject of prices for second. Compared to most NBA cities, Pistons tickets are rather cheap. This is especially true when it comes to re-sale websites.
I’ve lived in Chicago the last four years, and you wouldn’t believe the amount of money Bulls fans spend to see their team. They’re one of the worst clubs in the NBA, and yet, they lead the league in attendance. Go figure.
Bottom line
By no means am I suggesting that the Pistons are one of the NBA’s elites. They’re far from it. But they aren’t the doormats they used to be. There is talent on this roster. More than there has been in a quite some time.
Remember, it wasn’t that long ago when Josh Smith was the Pistons’ leading scorer. Lack of fan support made sense back then. Now, there’s no excuse.
So what’s the issue Metro Detroit? What else could you possibly want from this team at the moment?
The Pistons need to do some soul-searching over the next few days.
Maybe the fans should to.
Sincerely,
Brenden Welper