Stan Van Gundy fires back at Cavaliers owner after he says Pistons should remove ‘Detroit’ from their name
Unless you’re a Pistons fan, the best part of having Stan Van Gundy back in the league as the team’s president of basketball operations and head coach is the unabashed way in which he gives his opinions.
Van Gundy fired back at Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert, who said in a recent interview that the Pistons should remove “Detroit” from their name because the team actually plays its home games in Auburn Hills.
“Detroit doesn’t have an NBA team, because they’re somewhere 30 miles north of here, right? They’re in Auburn Hills, right?” Gilbert said on “Mojo In The Morning” on 95.5 FM, via 6abc.com (and HoopsHype).
This aggression will not stand, man.
“Dan Gilbert has some selfish interests for saying what he said,” Van Gundy said on 105.1 FM in Detroit. “I think we know what those are. Finally I think he has enough to worry about with his own team than worrying about us.”
Van Gundy’s remarks about “selfish interests” may have to do with Gilbert having invested millions in downtown Detroit. Gilbert also has spoken to Pistons owner Tom Gores “four or five times at the owners meetings,” where he’s brought up the topic about a downtown move, according to The Detroit News. …
“Tom Gores has been involved in the city of Detroit, not just the surrounding area,” Van Gundy said. “There are teams all over the place that carry the name of the city but represent an entire area. Where we play isn’t that much relevance.”
The moral of this little back and forth is simple: Van Gundy has returned, so any slights — perceived or otherwise — will not go unnoticed, or be allowed to slip by without a biting response.
Another reason to hate Dan Gilbert and the Cavs. Wished SVG would have called him out for his team being such a failure and having to "luck" into three #1 overall picks in the past four years.
I don't happen to know anyone who lives in Auburn Hills, but I'll bet that even they're fine with the name DETROIT Pistons.
