Pro basketball back in Detroit?

With the Red Wings and Tigers both plying their trade in the city of Detroit for nearly and over a century, respectively, and the Lions returning downtown in 2002, could it be only a matter of time before the Pistons also migrate to within Motown’s city limits?

Though it’s nowhere near official, and just speculation at this point, Wings and Tigers owner Mike Ilitch has now confirmed his desire to buy the successful NBA franchise and move it downtown.

Forever a supporter of Detroit, Ilitch summed up his wish to buy the Pistons in media reports, saying, “When I read in the paper there was a chance that this great sports town could lose one of its professional sports franchises, I just didn’t see how we could let that happen.”

Imagine the economic potential this has for Detroit, as well as the emotional lift it could provide for our city’s residents.

First, a new stadium would need to be built, one large enough to house the Wings and the Pistons, downtown. This would entail hundreds, if not thousands of jobs during the planning, demolition and construction phases, depending on where the site is located.

Second, increasing foot traffic in the city, before and after games, would lead to increased revenue and a greater familiarity with the city for metro Detroiters. It would mean that 41 times a season, from October to April, an additional 20,000+ residents of southeast Michigan and beyond would flood the city for basketball games. Many would head down before to get dinner, or stay late and patronize the bars in the surrounding area where the stadium is built.

And, factor in added tax revenues – from ticket sales, concession stands and the taxable value of the stadium itself – and the City of Detroit would reap incredible benefits now and for years to come.

Again, even though it’s all speculation, Ilitch’s history typically goes as follows: He sees something he wants, makes it publicly known he wants it, then gets what he wants. So we don’t know whether it will or won’t happen, but there’s reason to believe it’s a likely scenario. What we do know, though, is that he has the support of the general managers of the teams he already owns, and the city shouldn’t be too far behind them.

Advertisement