Feature Article Excerpt: How the Mighty Pistons Have Fallen

Loyal Fans Say Their Basketball Team Soon Will Resume Winning

For some Detroit Pistons basketball fans, the current season marks a shattering crash from a championship era. For others who are ever-loyal, troubles that include a recent 13-game losing streak simply represent temporary bad luck.

The Pistons are among the National Basketball Association's original historic franchises and their fan base is one of the largest, which means their sudden fall during the past two seasons is the talk of the
town.

To begin this season, injuries sent veteran mainstays Rip Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince to the sidelines for more than 25 games apiece. Just as Hamilton and then Prince were returning, newcomer Ben Gordon and spark plug Will Bynum were hurt.

As recently as two winters ago, the Pistons were on their way to a sixth straight trip to the NBA's Eastern Conference finals, which is the equivalent of reaching college basketball's vaunted Final Four. They had captured the 2004 crown as an underdog team, relying on team play rather than a megastar such as Kobe Bryant or LeBron James. Their hard hat slogan, "Going to Work," was intended to represent the Motor City's blue-collar image.

Virtually no basketball followers in 2008 would have envisioned that within two seasons, a reconstructed team would lose 13 games in a row....