1992–93 Detroit Pistons season

The 1992–93 NBA season was the 45th season for the Detroit Pistons in the National Basketball Association, and their 36th season in Detroit, Michigan.^[1] During the off-season, the Pistons signed free agent Terry Mills,^[2][3][4] and acquired Olden Polynice from the Los Angeles Clippers.^[5][6][7] Under new head coach Ron Rothstein,^[8][9][10] the Pistons years of battle would catch up with them, as they lost nine of their first eleven games of the regular season. However, they would win ten of their next eleven games to climb back into playoff connection, but then slip below .500 holding a 21–29 record at the All-Star break.^[11]

1992–93 Detroit Pistons season
Head coach	Ron Rothstein
General manager	Billy McKinney
Owner(s)	William Davidson
Arena	The Palace of Auburn Hills
Results
Record	40–42 (.488)
Place	Division: 6th (Central) Conference: 10th (Eastern)
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
Stats at Basketball Reference
Local media
Television	WKBD-TV PASS Sports
Radio	WWJ
< 1991–92 1993–94 >

At mid-season, the team traded Orlando Woolridge to the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for All-Star guard Alvin Robertson.^[12][13][14] After posting many winning and losing streaks throughout the entire season, the Pistons missed the NBA playoffs for the first time in ten years, finishing in sixth place in the Central Division with a 40–42 record.^[15]

Joe Dumars averaged 23.5 points and 4.0 assists per game, led the Pistons with 112 three-point field goals, and was named to the All-NBA Second Team, while Isiah Thomas averaged 17.6 points, 8.5 assists and 1.6 steals per game, and Mills provided the team with 14.8 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. In addition, Mark Aguirre contributed 9.9 points per game off the bench, but only played 51 games due to injuries and weight problems,^[16][17] while Bill Laimbeer averaged 8.7 points and 5.3 rebounds per game, Polynice provided with 7.3 points and 6.2 rebounds per game, and Dennis Rodman contributed 7.5 points, and led the league with 18.3 rebounds per game.^[18]

Dumars and Thomas were both selected for the 1993 NBA All-Star Game in Salt Lake City, Utah, which would be Thomas's final All-Star appearance,^[19][20][21] and Dumars and Rodman were both named to the NBA All-Defensive First Team; Dumars also finished tied in tenth place in Most Valuable Player voting,^[22][23] while Mills finished tied in eleventh place in Most Improved Player voting,^[23] and Rodman finished in fourth place in Defensive Player of the Year voting.^[24][23]

However, Rodman's bizarre behavior off the court was a great concern as he was involved in several off-the-court incidents, including a suicide attempt.^[25][26][27] Following the season, he was traded to the San Antonio Spurs after seven seasons in Detroit,^[28][29][30] while Aguirre signed as a free agent with the Los Angeles Clippers,^[17][31][32] and Rothstein was fired as head coach after just one season with the Pistons.^[33][34][35]

Draft picks

Main article: 1992 NBA draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College
1	19	Don MacLean	PF	United States	UCLA

Roster

1992–93 Detroit Pistons roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Player Height Weight DOB From G/F 24 Mark Aguirre 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 232 lb (105 kg) 1959–12–10 DePaul G 4 Joe Dumars 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1963–05–24 McNeese State G 25 Gerald Glass 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 221 lb (100 kg) 1967–11–12 Mississippi C 40 Bill Laimbeer 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 245 lb (111 kg) 1957–05–19 Notre Dame F 6 Terry Mills 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1967–12–21 Michigan F 35 Isaiah Morris 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 219 lb (99 kg) 1969–04–02 Arkansas G 23 Melvin Newbern 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1967–06–11 Minnesota C 34 Olden Polynice 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1964–11–21 Virginia F 42 Mark Randall 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1967–09–30 Kansas G/F 3 Alvin Robertson 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1962–07–22 Arkansas F 10 Dennis Rodman 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1961–05–13 SE Oklahoma State G 11 Isiah Thomas 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1961–04–30 Indiana G 20 Danny Young 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1962–07–26 Wake Forest

Head coach Ron Rothstein Assistant(s) Don Chaney Brendan Malone Alan Srebnick Legend (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured

Regular season

Season standings

Central Division v t e	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Div
y-Chicago Bulls	57	25	.695	—	31–10	26–15	19–9
x-Cleveland Cavaliers	54	28	.659	3	35–6	19–22	22–6
x-Charlotte Hornets	44	38	.537	13	22–19	22–19	12–16
x-Atlanta Hawks	43	39	.524	14	25–16	18–23	12–16
x-Indiana Pacers	41	41	.500	16	27–14	14–27	11–17
Detroit Pistons	40	42	.488	17	28–13	12–29	12–16
Milwaukee Bucks	28	54	.341	29	18–23	10–31	10–18

#	Eastern Conference v t e
	Team	W	L	PCT	GB
1	c-New York Knicks	60	22	.732	–
2	y-Chicago Bulls	57	25	.695	3
3	x-Cleveland Cavaliers	54	28	.659	6
4	x-Boston Celtics	48	34	.585	12
5	x-Charlotte Hornets	44	38	.537	16
6	x-New Jersey Nets	43	39	.524	17
7	x-Atlanta Hawks	43	39	.524	17
8	x-Indiana Pacers	41	41	.500	19
9	Orlando Magic	41	41	.500	19
10	Detroit Pistons	40	42	.488	20
11	Miami Heat	36	46	.439	24
12	Milwaukee Bucks	28	54	.341	32
13	Philadelphia 76ers	26	56	.317	36
14	Washington Bullets	22	60	.268	38

z - clinched division title

y - clinched division title

x - clinched playoff spot

Record vs. opponents

1992-93 NBA Records
Team	ATL	BOS	CHA	CHI	CLE	DAL	DEN	DET	GSW	HOU	IND	LAC	LAL	MIA	MIL	MIN	NJN	NYK	ORL	PHI	PHO	POR	SAC	SAS	SEA	UTA	WAS
Atlanta	—	2–2	3–2	2–2	0–5	1–1	2–0	2–3	2–0	1–1	2–2	1–1	1–1	3–1	3–2	2–0	1–3	2–2	1–3	3–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	2–2
Boston	2–2	—	3–1	1–3	3–1	2–0	2–0	1–3	2–0	1–1	2–2	1–1	1–1	3–1	2–2	2–0	4–0	1–4	3–2	4–1	0–2	2–0	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–2	4–1
Charlotte	2–3	1–3	—	2–3	1–3	2–0	1–1	4–1	2–0	0–2	0–5	1–1	1–1	2–2	3–1	2–0	2–2	1–3	3–1	4–0	0–2	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–0
Chicago	2–2	3–1	3–2	—	2–3	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–0	0–2	5–0	2–0	0–2	3–1	4–1	2–0	4–0	1–3	3–1	2–2	1–1	2–0	2–0	0–2	2–0	2–0	4–0
Cleveland	5–0	1–3	3–1	3–2	—	2–0	1–1	3–2	2–0	1–1	4–0	1–1	2–0	2–2	4–1	2–0	2–2	1–3	2–2	4–0	2–0	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	3–1
Dallas	1–1	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	—	1–5	1–1	0–4	1–4	1–1	0–4	1–3	0–2	0–2	1–4	0–2	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–4	0–4	0–4	0–5	1–3	0–5	1–1
Denver	0–2	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	5–1	—	1–1	3–1	2–3	1–1	2–2	1–3	0–2	1–1	3–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–3	1–3	3–1	1–4	1–3	2–3	2–0
Detroit	3–2	3–1	1–4	1–3	2–3	1–1	1–1	—	0–2	1–1	3–2	1–1	1–1	1–3	2–2	1–1	3–1	2–2	3–1	3–1	0–2	1–1	2–0	0–2	0–2	0–2	4–0
Golden State	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	4–0	1–3	2–0	—	2–2	0–2	2–3	1–4	2–0	1–1	3–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–4	0–5	4–1	3–1	1–4	3–1	1–1
Houston	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	4–1	3–2	1–1	2–2	—	2–0	4–0	3–1	2–0	1–1	4–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–2	1–3	4–0	4–1	1–3	4–1	1–1
Indiana	2–2	2–2	5–0	0–5	0–4	1–1	1–1	2–3	2–0	0–2	—	1–1	1–1	2–2	2–3	1–1	3–1	1–3	2–2	3–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	0–2	3–1
L.A. Clippers	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	4–0	2–2	1–1	3–2	0–4	1–1	—	3–2	0–2	2–0	4–0	0–2	2–0	1–1	1–1	3–2	2–3	3–2	0–4	1–4	2–2	2–0
L.A. Lakers	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	0–2	3–1	3–1	1–1	4–1	1–3	1–1	2–3	—	0–2	1–1	3–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	2–0	0–5	3–2	3–2	2–2	1–4	1–3	2–0
Miami	1–3	1–3	2–2	1–3	2–2	2–0	2–0	3–1	0–2	0–2	2–2	2–0	2–0	—	2–2	2–0	2–3	0–5	3–2	1–3	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	2–3
Milwaukee	2–3	2–2	1–3	1–4	1–4	2–0	1–1	2–2	1–1	1–1	3–2	0–2	1–1	2–2	—	1–1	0–4	1–3	2–2	2–2	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	0–2	1–3
Minnesota	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	4–1	2–3	1–1	1–3	2–4	1–1	0–4	1–3	0–2	1–1	—	1–1	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–4	1–3	1–3	1–4	0–4	1–4	1–1
New Jersey	3–1	0–4	2–2	0–4	2–2	2–0	1–1	1–3	1–1	1–1	1–3	2–0	2–0	3–2	4–0	1–1	—	1–3	3–2	3–2	1–1	0–2	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–1
New York	2–2	4–1	3–1	3–1	3–1	2–0	1–1	2–2	2–0	1–1	3–1	0–2	2–0	5–0	3–1	2–0	3–1	—	2–2	5–0	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	4–1
Orlando	3–1	2–3	1–3	1–3	2–2	1–1	2–0	1–3	1–1	1–1	2–2	1–1	1–1	2–3	2–2	2–0	2–3	2–2	—	3–2	0–2	2–0	2–0	0–2	0–2	1–1	4–0
Philadelphia	1–3	1–4	0–4	2–2	0–4	1–1	1–1	1–3	1–1	0–2	1–3	1–1	0–2	3–1	2–2	2–0	2–3	0–5	2–3	—	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	3–1
Phoenix	2–0	2–0	2–0	1–1	0–2	4–0	3–1	2–0	4–1	2–2	1–1	2–3	5–0	2–0	2–0	4–0	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	—	3–2	5–0	3–1	2–3	3–1	2–0
Portland	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	2–0	4–0	3–1	1–1	5–0	3–1	1–1	3–2	2–3	1–1	2–0	3–1	2–0	1–1	0–2	2–0	2–3	—	5–0	2–2	2–3	2–2	1–1
Sacramento	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	4–0	1–3	0–2	1–4	0–4	0–2	2–3	2–3	1–1	1–1	3–1	0–2	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–5	0–5	—	2–2	1–4	2–2	1–1
San Antonio	0–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	5–0	4–1	2–0	1–3	1–4	1–1	4–0	2–2	1–1	2–0	4–1	1–1	0–2	2–0	2–0	1–3	2–2	2–2	—	3–1	3–3	1–1
Seattle	1–1	2–0	1–1	0–2	1–1	3–1	3–1	2–0	4–1	3–1	0–2	4–1	4–1	1–1	2–0	4–0	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	3–2	3–2	4–1	1–3	—	2–2	2–0
Utah	0–2	2–0	1–1	0–2	1–1	5–0	3–2	2–0	1–3	1–4	2–0	2–2	3–1	2–0	2–0	4–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–3	2–2	2–2	3–3	2–2	—	1–1
Washington	2–2	1–4	0–4	0–4	1–3	1–1	0–2	0–4	1–1	1–1	1–3	0–2	0–2	3–2	3–1	1–1	1–4	1–4	0–4	1–3	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	—

Game log

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

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Joe Dumars	77	77	40.2	.466	.375	.864	1.9	4.0	1.0	0.1	23.5
Isiah Thomas	79	79	37.0	.418	.308	.737	2.9	8.5	1.6	0.2	17.6
Terry Mills	81	46	27.0	.461	.278	.791	5.8	1.4	0.5	0.6	14.8
Orlando Woolridge	50	47	29.5	.479	.000	.673	3.5	2.2	0.5	0.5	13.1
Mark Aguirre	51	15	20.7	.443	.361	.767	3.0	2.1	0.3	0.1	9.9
Alvin Robertson	30	22	31.4	.434	.343	.690	4.4	3.6	2.2	0.3	9.3
Bill Laimbeer	79	41	24.5	.509	.370	.894	5.3	1.6	0.6	0.5	8.7
Dennis Rodman	62	55	38.9	.427	.205	.534	18.3	1.6	0.8	0.7	7.5
Olden Polynice	67	18	19.4	.490	.000	.465	6.2	0.4	0.5	0.3	7.3
Gerald Glass	56	5	13.9	.429	.226	.636	2.5	1.2	0.5	0.3	5.3
Melvin Newbern	33	1	9.4	.372	.125	.567	1.1	1.7	0.7	0.0	3.6
Danny Young	65	2	12.9	.413	.324	.875	0.7	1.8	0.5	0.1	2.9
Mark Randall	35	0	6.9	.506	.143	.615	1.6	0.3	0.1	0.1	2.8
Isaiah Morris	25	0	4.1	.456		.750	0.5	0.2	0.1	0.0	2.2
Jeff Ruland	11	0	5.0	.455		.500	1.6	0.2	0.2	0.0	1.1
Darrell Walker	9	2	16.0	.158	.000	.333	2.1	1.0	1.1	0.0	0.9

Player Statistics Citation:^[18]

Awards and records

• Joe Dumars, All-NBA Second Team
• Joe Dumars, NBA All-Defensive First Team
• Dennis Rodman, NBA All-Defensive First Team

Transactions