Illitch Wants To Buy Pistons

Mike Illitch, owner of the Detroit Red Wings and Tigers and co-founder of Little Ceasar's pizza has announced his intentions to buy the NBA's Detroit Pistons, ESPN has learned. He notified the team today and made a public statement about it as well. He would move the team from Auburn Hills, where they currently play, to Detroit. In the statement Illitch says, "Marian and I grew up here, we raised our family here and we built our businesses here. Detroit is our home. When I read in the paper there was the chance that this great sports town could lose one of its professional sports franchises, I just didn’t see how we could let that happen. "The Pistons, just like the Red Wings, Tigers and the Lions, have a rich and storied tradition in this community and they’ve brought pride to fans and our community. "You all know I love sports - all sports, from amateur sports to the various pro sports we’ve had the privilege to be involved with, and like a lot of others I’m sure, I really want to see the Pistons remain the Detroit Pistons. "We talked about it internally and when you take our 33 years of experience in professional sports, our commitment to this community, our passion for winning and pursuing championships, and you couple that with the opportunity to have a local, engaged owner for the Pistons, we decided to take a run at it. "We believe we could bring a lot to the table that could be tremendously positive for the Pistons franchise, the NBA, and the fans of this community." Pistons Owner Karen Davidson has said she's considering a sale of the franchise by itself or as part of a package with Palace Sports and Entertainment after the death of her husband Bill last year. Included in the Palace Sports and Entertainment group is the Palace of Auburn Hills, DTE Energy Music Theatre and Meadow Brook Music Festival. Bill Davidson was the CEO of Guardian Industries, one of the world's largest manufacturers of architectural and automotive glass. In addition to the Pistons, he also owned the Detroit Shock of the WNBA, the co-owner of the Detroit Fury of the Arena Football League, and was the former owner of the Tampa Bay Lightning of the NHL and Detroit Vipers of the IHL. In June it was announced that Citi Private Bank was assisting in the potential sale of the Pistons.