Top Playmakers in Detroit Pistons History

The Detroit Pistons, founded in the 1948-49 season, have a rich history in the NBA. With 42 playoff appearances under their belt, the franchise has clinched three championships. Over the years, the team has been home to many talented players. Let's take a closer look at the top five players in franchise history when it comes to assists.

1. Isiah Thomas, 9,061 Assists

Thomas played for 13 seasons in the NBA, all with Detroit. He made 12 All-Star teams and finished inside the top-10 in MVP voting four times. In the 1984-85 season, he led the league in assists with an average of 13.9 dimes per game. In 1983-84, Thomas began a streak of four straight seasons in which he averaged at least 10.0 assists. For his career, he averaged 9.3 assists over 36 minutes per game.

2. Joe Dumars, 4,612 Assists

Like Thomas, Dumars spent his entire career with the Pistons. He played 14 seasons, logging 35 minutes per game. In seven of his first eight seasons in the league, he played in at least 75 games. He began his career by averaging at least 4.0 assists in each of his first eight seasons.

3. Dave Bing, 4,330 Assists

Bing spent the first nine seasons of his career with Detroit. He won the Rookie of the Year Award in the 1966-67 season, averaging 20.0 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game. Bing seemed to always be on the floor, averaging at least 37 minutes per game in seven of his nine seasons with the Pistons. For his career, he would go on to average 6.4 assists over 675 games with the Pistons.

4. Chauncey Billups, 2,984 Assists

Billups played for seven different franchises during his career. He spent bulk of his career with the Pistons, playing 482 games for the team across eight seasons. Billups was key in leading Detroit to the 2004 NBA championship. The following season, he helped the Pistons reach the Finals again where they lost in seven games to the Spurs. Billups’ best individual season was the 2005-06 campaign when he finished fifth in the MVP voting with averages of 18.5 points, 3.1 rebounds and 8.6 assists.  He averaged 6.2 assists per game during his time with the Pistons, which is more than he averaged with any other team.

5. Grant Hill, 2,720 Assists

The Pistons selected Hill with the third overall pick in the 1994 Draft. He made the All-Star team and won the Rookie of the Year Award in 1994-95, averaging 19.9 points, 6.4 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game. He spent the first six seasons of his career with the Pistons, averaging at least 6.0 assists per game in four separate seasons. He finished inside the top-10 in MVP voting in each of his final five seasons with the team and dished out 6.3 assists per game during his tenure as a member of the Pistons.