Detroit Pistons: Memories of The Palace of Auburn Hills

The demolition process for the former home of the Detroit Pistons has begun. Let’s take a look at the memories that the Palace of Auburn Hills has given us.

As with most old buildings, they tend to get torn down. The Palace of Auburn Hills, the home that once housed the Detroit Pistons and Detroit Shock, has begun the teardown process. As with the Joe Louis Arena earlier this year, this, too, concludes an era of a historic time period.

The Palace was the first NBA arena to be financed by private funds as then-owner Bill Davidson and two developers paid the $90 million construction bill (Writer’s Note: For more Palace reading, this piece from 2008 by Don Muret is a fantastic read). Davidson’s design implemented first-level suites, something that at the time was uncommon. A large number of suites sort of ushered in a new, modern way that future NBA arenas would be built.

According to multiple entities, The Palace was ahead of its time.

"Although the Palace became one of the oldest arenas in the NBA, its foresighted design contained the amenities that most NBA teams have sought in new arenas built since that time. By contrast, of the other NBA venues that opened during the 1988-89 season, Amway Arena, Charlotte Coliseum, Miami Arena, and the Bradley Center have been demolished, while Sleep Train Arena has been replaced. All of these arenas were rendered obsolete by the lack of luxury suites and club seating, lucrative revenue-generating features that made pro sports teams financially successful in order to remain competitive long-term, and also being located in suburban rather than downtown areas (the Palace, however, remained one of the successful suburban arenas)."

The arena opened on Aug. 13, 1988, and just in time, as the Bad Boy era Pistons rattled off back-to-back NBA Championships in 1989 and 1990. These were the first memories of an arena that would span nearly three decades. Memories that people and history will cherish for years.