But the next three seasons were about the steady improvement of Dumars and the Pistons as a whole. It was here where Dumars would practice his jump shot.[2]. Dumars arrived just at the time the Pistons began to rise to preeminence in the NBA. With the series tied at one game each, he exploded in Game Three for 33 points. His brother David later played professional football in the USFL. Unfortunately for the Pistons’ playoff opponents, Dumars was the picture of health averaging 18.2 ppg in 20 playoff games.
Ultimately, though, he would step down from his post with the Pistons in April of 2015 after a run of five straight playoff-less seasons. He finished his college career as the 11th leading scorer in NCAA history.
And after defeating the Washington Bullets in the first round of the 1988 NBA Playoffs, Jordan and the Bulls stood between the Pistons and another trip to the Eastern Conference Finals. The Pistons finished at 20-62 and missed the playoffs for a second consecutive year. After 25 years of operation, Joe Dumars' Fieldhouse in Shelby Township is closing and holding a liquidation sale. He finished his rookie campaign averaging 9.4 ppg, earning a spot on the NBA All-Rookie Team with Xavier McDaniel, Patrick Ewing, Karl Malone and Charles Oakley. But after the season, Dumars participated on Dream Team II, the U.S. squad that won a gold medal at the 1994 World Championship of Basketball. By season’s end he had also been named to the All-NBA Third Team and the NBA All-Defensive First Team – and he had another NBA Championship ring. The only negative that season was that he suffered a serious injury for the first time in his career when he broke his left hand in a January game against the New York Knicks. Detroit promptly won 20 of its next 24 contests and. Founded by Dumars in 1996, Detroit Technologies is an automotive supply company. When the Detroit Pistons selected two rookie guards-Allan Houston and Lindsey Hunter-in the 1993 NBA Draft, it was clear that the club was starting a rebuilding process. In a nutshell, Dumars was not to let Jordan drive to the right when he was at the top of the key or to the middle when he was on the wing.
Undoubtedly the duo would eventually serve as replacements for Dumars and Isiah Thomas, one of the most accomplished backcourts in league history, but in 1993-94 Dumars wasn’t quite ready to relinquish his spot. [2] While Dumars grew up in an athletic family, he actually preferred football as a child, as all five of his brothers were … [16], In August 2017, Dumars was called on to join Independent Sports & Entertainment, an integrated sports, media and entertainment management agency, as president of its basketball division. and scoring at a clip of 20.4 ppg, the first time he would be the team leading scorer. [7], On June 21, 2019, Dumars was named special advisor to the general manager of the Sacramento Kings. He finished his college career as the 11th leading scorer in NCAA history. After Boston won the first two games at the Boston Garden, Game Three included a bench clearing fight between Bill Laimbeer and Larry Bird. He also acquired Chauncey Billups, another player who had to work for every minute he got after a disappointing few years after being a high draft selection. He played for the US national team in the 1994 FIBA World Championship, winning the gold medal. His regular-season accomplishments were only a warm-up for the postseason, in which Dumars turned in a performance few Pistons fans will forget.
Although for the remainder of his career the Pistons would not win another championship, Dumars would play at his highest level. The Celtics won Game Five on the famous last second steal by Bird and assist to Dennis Johnson.
He also drafted a four-year player out of Kentucky named Tayshaun Prince who many thought was too slight to succeed in the NBA. [14], Dumars is the founder and owner of the Joe Dumars Fieldhouse, an indoor sports and entertainment facility located in Shelby Township and Detroit. Long considered one of the classiest players in the league, he served as a mentor to future superstar Grant Hill when Hill joined the Pistons as a rookie in 1994-95. In 1987, the Pistons defeated the Washington Bullets and Atlanta Hawks on their way to an Eastern Conference showdown with the Boston Celtics. Football was more popular in the region and all five of his brothers were defensive standouts at Natchitoches Central High.
However, Dumars was not yet done with receiving awards. Dumars served as the president of basketball operations for the Pistons from 2000 to 2014. At the time he returned to the Pistons during the 1999-2000 season as vice president of player personnel and at the end of the season promoted to president of basketball operations, the franchise was not in great shape. Dumars grew up in an athletic family, but, surprisingly, basketball was not his favorite sport as a child. His brother David later played professional football in the USFL.
Larry Brown had been hired as the head coach prior to the season and lead the team to the 2004 Finals where the Los Angeles Lakers awaited.
However, on January 15, 1986, with the Pistons having lost 15 of the previous 20 games, he was inserted into the starting line-up, a position he would maintain until his retirement. During his four years at McNeese State University, Dumars averaged 22.5 points per game, including 25.8 ppg as a senior – good for sixth in the nation. He has the distinction as being the only Pistons player to ever wear this number. During his 14 years as President, Dumars guided the organization to a 595–536 (.527) regular-season record, 73 playoff wins, six Eastern Conference Finals appearances (2003–08), six Central Division titles, two Eastern Conference Championships (2004 and 2005), and the 2004 NBA championship. The Pistons and Dumars would get one step closer to the franchises first NBA Championship in the 1987-88 season. For more information on cost and hours of operation, please call (586) 731-3080.
Dumars' mother, Ophelia, was a custodian at Northwestern State University in Natchitoches while his father, Joe (Big Joe), was a truck driver. The club was in the playoffs the previous two seasons, and won 46 games in his first season but was ousted from the first round of the playoffs. Family. He led the Pistons in scoring for a fourth consecutive season with 20.4 ppg. [15] The Shelby Township location permanently closed in August 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In his prime as an executive for the Pistons, Dumars ran the team just as he played – with hard work and tenacity. Dumars was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006.
McNeese State University became the beneficiary of the bicycle hoop. “While I have a lot of good memories with these people, I think the time has come for me to leave basketball so that I can focus on taking my family to the next level,” Dumars told reporters at a press conference, noting that the time had come to “shake up” his household, beginning with retooling his children’s roles and making an upgrade in the wife position. The Pistons won Games Three and Four back at the Silverdome. He was an easy choice for NBA Finals MVP. Dumars averaged 18.4 ppg through the first 68 games of the season, but then a broken hand sustained against the San Antonio Spurs late in the season slowed him for the rest of the year. He pulled an executive’s magic trick by acquiring Rasheed Wallace from the Atlanta Hawks after he had just been dealt from the Trail Blazers at the 2004 trading deadline.
[9], On February 9, 2014, Dumars fired Maurice Cheeks as head coach and appointed John Loyer as interim head coach. Dumars averaged 20.6 ppg in 15 postseason games. Eventually though Dumars moved into the front office where he would restore the glory of a proud franchise. Joe Dumars’s mother’s name is unknown at this time and his father’s name is under review.
[12] On August 14, 2020, Dumars was named interim executive vice president of basketball operations. After losing in the 2003 Western Conference Finals, following winning three consecutive championships, the Lakers added future Hall of Famers Karl Malone and Gary Payton to a club that already featured Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant and was coached by nine-time NBA Champion Phil Jackson. The first six games of the series had been hard fought, literally. Dumars started 45 times leading all rookies with 4.8 assists per game. He sold off his interest in the company in 2006 to pursue other business interests and focus on his role as Pistons' president of basketball operations. In the 1994-95 season, an injury to point guard Hunter and Houston playing well at the off guard required a shift for Dumars to a playmaking role.
The following year, he won accolades during the Eastern Conference Finals when, with Dennis Rodman, he was a cornerstone of coach Chuck Daly's "Jordan Rules" defensive playbook, which forced the Chicago Bulls to change their offensive strategy to include less of Michael Jordan and more of the other members of the team. With the win, Dumars became the first African American executive to lead a team to an NBA championship. Legends profile: Joe Dumars. The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame also recognized his contributions as he was elected to be a member of the 2006 class. Joe’s mom, Ophelia, was a custodian at Northwestern State University in Natchitoches while his father, Joe (Big Joe), was a truck driver. One of the top shooting guards of his era, Joe Dumars was a consistent all-around player throughout his 14-year NBA career.
[4] He was voted the league's Executive of the Year for the 2002–03 season and quietly went on to build the team that won the 2004 NBA championship.