Billups saddened by current state of Pistons

By Chris Dempsey

The Pistons’ blue-and-red had always been good to Chauncey Billups. Trips to the playoffs were commonplace, challenging for the title was expected. A championship was won. Wins were collected by the bushels.

Now, the Pistons are just a shell of the team that flourished in the early 2000s.

Wins are not only scarce, but a recent 13-game losing streak was just one loss away from tying the franchise record for losses in a row. A playoff trip is a long shot. A championship is out of the question. The Palace at Auburn Hills, once one of the hardest places to play in the NBA, now routinely houses thousands of unoccupied seats during Pistons games. Joe Dumars, Pistons president of basketball operations, is reportedly ready to start trading more players as they enter a major rebuilding stage.

Billups has watched it all from afar, shaking his head. Just two seasons ago, he was on a Pistons team that reached the Eastern Conference Finals. He remains in close contact with Rip Hamilton, Tayshaun Prince, Rodney Stuckey and Chucky Atkins, among others.

“It’s sad to me, man,” Billups said. “I’m always going to have a huge place in my heart for Detroit and for the Pistons. I hate to see them struggle like that. They are still my brothers that are still on the team going through that. I know what we all went through together. We never would have even thought of losing like that – 13 games in a row. That was never even a nightmare. I feel bad for them that they have to go through that. But it is what it is. What are you going to do?”
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