1996–97 Detroit Pistons season

1996–97 Detroit Pistons season
Head coach	Doug Collins
General manager	Rick Sund
Owner(s)	William Davidson
Arena	The Palace of Auburn Hills
Results
Record	54–28 (.659)
Place	Division: 4th (Central) Conference: 5th (Eastern)
Playoff finish	East First Round (eliminated 2-3)
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com

The 1996-97 NBA season was the Pistons' 49th season in the NBA and 40th season in the city of Detroit. The Pistons went on a 20-4 start, but went 34-24 for the rest of the season finishing third in the Central Division with a 54-28 record. Grant Hill, Joe Dumars and head coach Doug Collins represented the Eastern Conference during the 1997 NBA All-Star Game. In the playoffs, they would lose five games to the Atlanta Hawks after taking a 2-1 lead in the first round. The Pistons also changed their logo, and wore teal uniforms which lasted until 2001.

Draft picks

Main article: 1996 NBA Draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College
1	26	Jerome Williams	PF	United States	Georgetown

Roster

Detroit Pistons roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB (YYYY–MM–DD) From PG 3 Childress, Randolph 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 188 lb (85 kg) Wake Forest SG 12 Curry, Michael 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Georgia Southern SG 4 Dumars, Joe 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) McNeese State PG 9 Green, Litterial 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Georgia SF 33 Hill, Grant 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Duke PG 1 Hunter, Lindsey 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Jackson State PF 43 Long, Grant 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Eastern Michigan C 44 Mahorn, Rick 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Hampton SG 23 McKie, Aaron 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 209 lb (95 kg) Temple PF 6 Mills, Terry 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Michigan C 42 Ratliff, Theo 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Wyoming PF 52 Reid, Don 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Georgetown C 50 Thorpe, Otis 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Providence PF 13 Williams, Jerome 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 206 lb (93 kg) Georgetown	Head coach Doug Collins Legend (C) Team captain (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured Roster • Transactions

Regular season

Season standings

Central Division	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Div
y-Chicago Bulls	69	13	.841	–	39–2	30–11	24–4
x-Atlanta Hawks	56	26	.683	13	36–5	20–21	17–11
x-Detroit Pistons	54	28	.659	15	30–11	24–17	17–11
x-Charlotte Hornets	54	28	.659	15	30–11	24–17	14–14
Cleveland Cavaliers	42	40	.512	27	25–16	17–24	13–15
Indiana Pacers	39	43	.476	30	21–20	18–23	11–17
Milwaukee Bucks	33	49	.402	36	20–21	13–28	10–18
Toronto Raptors	30	52	.366	39	18–23	12–29	6–22

#	Eastern Conference
	Team	W	L	PCT	GB
1	z-Chicago Bulls	69	13	.841	–
2	y-Miami Heat	61	21	.744	8
3	x-New York Knicks	57	25	.695	12
4	x-Atlanta Hawks	56	26	.683	13
5	x-Detroit Pistons	54	28	.659	15
6	x-Charlotte Hornets	54	28	.659	15
7	x-Orlando Magic	45	37	.549	24
8	x-Washington Bullets	44	38	.537	25
9	Cleveland Cavaliers	42	40	.512	27
10	Indiana Pacers	39	43	.476	30
11	Milwaukee Bucks	33	49	.402	36
12	Toronto Raptors	30	52	.366	39
13	New Jersey Nets	26	56	.317	43
14	Philadelphia 76ers	22	60	.268	47
15	Boston Celtics	15	67	.183	54

z - clinched division title

y - clinched division title

x - clinched playoff spot

Playoffs

East First Round

(4) Atlanta Hawks vs. (5) Detroit Pistons Last Playoff Meeting: 1991 Eastern Conference First Round (Detroit won 3-2)

Game	Date	Home	Score	Visitor	Score	Record (ATL-DET)	Venue	Recap	Television
1	April 25	Atlanta	89	Detroit	75	1-0	Omni Coliseum, Atlanta, Georgia	1
2	April 27	Atlanta	80	Detroit	93	1-1	Omni Coliseum, Atlanta, Georgia	2
3	April 29	Detroit	99	Atlanta	91	1-2	The Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills, Michigan	3
4	May 2	Detroit	82	Atlanta	94	2-2	Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills, Michigan	4
5	May 4	Atlanta	84	Detroit	79	3-2	Omni Coliseum, Atlanta, Georgia	5	NBC
Atlanta wins series 3–2

Player statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game

Season

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Stacey Augmon
Randolph Childress
Michael Curry
Joe Dumars
Litterial Green
Grant Hill
Lindsey Hunter
Grant Long
Rick Mahorn
Aaron McKie
Terry Mills
Theo Ratliff
Don Reid
Kenny Smith
Otis Thorpe
Jerome Williams

Playoffs

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Michael Curry
Joe Dumars
Grant Hill
Lindsey Hunter
Grant Long
Rick Mahorn
Aaron McKie
Terry Mills
Theo Ratliff
Don Reid
Otis Thorpe
Jerome Williams

Awards and records

• Grant Hill, All-NBA First Team

See also

• 1996-97 NBA season