Detroit Pistons: Going Green By Planting Trees
The Detroit Pistons have an interesting twist on the NBA’s green initiative by committing to planting trees in the Detroit area.
The Pistons will donate $15 for every three-pointer made during the 2015-16 season to The Greening of Detroit’s tree planting effort, according to NBA.com. The Pistons will also participate in a tree planting event with The Greening of Detroit in the spring as a part of the NBA’s Green initiative.
“We are extremely thrilled to take part in the ‘Threes for Trees’ program to benefit The Greening of Detroit,” said Dennis Mannion, CEO of Palace Sports & Entertainment and the Detroit Pistons. “This is an exciting opportunity to make a true impact on our environment and give back to the great city of Detroit.”
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With the city’s commitment to rebuilding and renovating Detroit, it makes sense for the Pistons to help the city move forward with their project. The Pistons’ marketing campaign in 2015-16 is aimed at uniting the city of Detroit. They have published several videos to promote unity of Detroit, the Pistons and the residents of metro Detroit.
The Pistons’ young core brings added excitement to the new movement in Detroit. There are only three players older than 28 on the Pistons’ roster. Star center Andre Drummond is 22 years old and talented point guard Reggie Jackson is 25. The Pistons’ average age is 26 years old.
They will try to develop and keep their young core together to grow with the city of Detroit as they re-build the downtown area.
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Off to a 4-1 start, the Pistons have an exciting brand of basketball. However, the attendance numbers have been down over the past couple seasons. Since the 2011-12 season, the Pistons haven’t ranked higher than 26th in NBA attendance. The Pistons have increased their attendance numbers each year since the 2011-12 season.
With the Pistons’ marketing outreach, their renovations to The Palace and commitment to moving Detroit forward, they could see a spike in attendance numbers in the 2015-16 season. They currently average 15,931 fans per game through their first three games of the season.
It still ranks for 26 in the NBA, but is another increase over last season’s 15,266 average attendance, according to ESPN’s NBA Attendance Report.
Through five games this season, the Pistons have made 38 three-pointers and have donated $570 to The Greening of Detroit campaign. During the 2014-15 season, the Pistons made a total of 703 three-pointers, which would tally over $10,000 in donations.
Detroit is shooting 31.7 percent this season from three-point range. Marcus Morris (.412) leads the team in three-point percentage followed by Ersan Ilyasova (.400) and Jackson (.368).
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The donations will help plant and maintain approximately 4,000 to 5,000 trees in the Detroit area. The Pistons “Threes for Trees” program has a tracker on their website.