Van Gundy won’t return to Pistons as coach or team president
After four seasons of mostly mediocre results, the Detroit Pistons are moving on without Stan Van Gundy.
He won’t return as president of basketball operations and he isn’t staying on as Detroit’s coach, either.
Van Gundy held both those roles for four years, and at times the Pistons seemed to be making progress. But they made the playoffs only once during his tenure, in 2016, and the National Basketball Association team announced his departure Monday. Owner Tom Gores said it was a difficult decision.
“I am grateful to Stan for everything he’s done for the Pistons and for the city of Detroit,” Gores said. “He rebuilt the culture of our basketball team, re-instilled a winning attitude and work ethic, and took us to the playoffs two years ago. He went all-in from Day One to positively impact this franchise and this community.
“But over the past two seasons our team has not progressed, and we decided that a change is necessary to regain our momentum,” Gores said. The Pistons went 39-43 this season, missing the playoffs for the third time in four years. They’ve made the postseason just once in the past nine seasons, and even a blockbuster trade for Blake Griffin wasn’t enough to salvage 201718. The Pistons went 152-176 over the past four seasons , and Van Gundy’s decisions have come under more criticism than his coaching. Detroit hasn’t made the most of its draft position. spending first-round picks on Stanley Johnson, Henry Ellenson and Luke Kennard.