With the Pistons teetering on the cusp of basketball history, the fans are demanding answers from owner Tom Gores on where it all went wrong. this week, Gores tried his best to address the concerns and denounced the growing movement for him to sell the team to more competent leadership.
“They can say what they want, but that’s ridiculous,” Gores said, via Jack Maloney of CBS Sports. “Other than winning, and we should win more games, we do a lot in the community. Players, the organization, we do a lot in the community.”
The Pistons have been an afterthought in the East for the better part of a decade now but Gores insists that they are good for more than just their on-court production. In fact, Gores believes that the team’s off-court charity work is more than enough to justify the support of fans.
“If you put aside winning, we’ve made a very big difference in the community,” he said on the idea of selling the Pistons. “I understand that’s only going to mean a lot to people if we win, but the underworking of what’s happening and with our community, over all these years, is there. We’re doing multibillion-dollar things outside of (basketball). I understand the fans being upset, but it’s a ridiculous thought.”
However the Pistons try to spin this, their 2-26 record this season speaks for itself. And until the franchise can turn things around in a more meaningful way, nobody is going to want to hear about their active community work.
A Historic Run In Detroit
The season began off well enough for the Pistons, who started 2-1 after some pretty encouraging play. But following their win over the Bulls on October 28th, they went on to lose the next 25 games in a row and there are no signs of a turnaround. With a win percentage of just .07, Detroit is now on pace for the worst season in NBA history and the vibes are getting worse with every loss.
This week, things reached their breaking point in Detroit after the Pistons lost their 25th straight game against a shorthanded Jazz team. With the squad down big, fans began to chant “sell the team” in an embarrassing moment for the franchise. Clearly, Gores has no intention of giving in to the fan demands, but he did promise change in some form before the end of the season.
Pistons Will Make A Move
The good news for Pistons fans is that Gores did hint at potential trades down the road. At this point, nothing is imminent on the trade front but the Pistons have a chance to acquire some decent pieces if they’re willing to part ways with players like Killian Hayes, Joe Harris, and Marvin Bagley III. The question now is, which players should the Pistons be going for?
Amid their historic losing streak, it wouldn’t make sense for the Pistons to keep taking fliers on young players and unproven prospects. Instead, they might be better targeting some veterans to help beef up the rotation and add some NBA-level talent alongside Cade Cunningham. No matter what the Pistons do, they are likely to be bad for some time but there’s no reason for them to be this bad, and even Tom Gores can recognize that something needs to be done to break this embarrassing run.