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Detroit Pistons: 25 Best Players To Play For The Pistons

By Phil Watson

Oct 8, 2015; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; A general view of The Palace of Auburn Hills prior to the game between the Detroit Pistons and the Brooklyn Nets. Mandatory Credit: Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 8, 2015; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; A general view of The Palace of Auburn Hills prior to the game between the Detroit Pistons and the Brooklyn Nets. Mandatory Credit: Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports /
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Basketball: Boston Celtics Bill Sharman (21) in action vs Fort Wayne Pistons Chuck Noble (5) and Mel Hutchins (9) at Boston Garden. Boston, MA 11/19/1955 CREDIT: Hy Peskin (Photo by Hy Peskin /Sports Illustrated/Getty Images) (Set Number: X3304 )
Basketball: Boston Celtics Bill Sharman (21) in action vs Fort Wayne Pistons Chuck Noble (5) and Mel Hutchins (9) at Boston Garden. Boston, MA 11/19/1955 CREDIT: Hy Peskin (Photo by Hy Peskin /Sports Illustrated/Getty Images) (Set Number: X3304 ) /

PF. . Mel Hutchins. 23. player. 64. <strong>How acquired:</strong> Contract purchased from Milwaukee Hawks, Aug. 23, 1953.

Mel Hutchins had earned his first All-Star nod, but the cash-strapped Milwaukee Hawks opted in August 1953 to sell his contract to the Fort Wayne Pistons, who happily handed over $10,000 for the big man.

Hutchins earned three more All-Star bids with the Pistons, finishing fourth in the MVP voting in 1955-56. The durable power forward was second in the league in minutes per game in 1953-54 and fourth in 1954-55.

DET_23_HUTCHINS
DET_23_HUTCHINS /

In 1955, the Pistons made the NBA Finals for the first time, losing in seven games to the Syracuse Nationals. Hutchins averaged 13.7 points, 8.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists in 36.7 minutes per game in the series, hitting 41.9 percent from the floor and 77.4 percent at the foul line.

Fort Wayne was back in the Finals the next season, but the Philadelphia Warriors handled them in five games. A cold-shooting Hutchins put up 8.6 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game, but shot just 29.4 percent from the field and 65 percent at the free-throw stripe.

In April 1957, the Pistons dealt Hutchins and Charlie Tyra to the New York Knicks in exchange for Harry Gallatin, Nathaniel Clifton and Dick Atha.

In four seasons in Fort Wayne, Hutchins averaged 11.7 points, 8.6 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 37.9 minutes per game, while shooting 39.6 percent from the floor and 69.1 percent from the line.

He was an All-American as a senior at BYU and was taken second overall by the Tri-Cities Blackhawks in the 1951 NBA Draft, shortly before the club moved to Milwaukee.

An All-Star for the Hawks in 1953, Hutchins was second in the NBA in rebounding in 1951-52 and fourth in minutes per game in 1952-53.

Hutchins’ stay with the Knicks was brief. He sustained a severe knee injury after playing in just 18 games and retired after the 1957-58 campaign.

He is 16th in NBA history with an average of 37.9 minutes per game.

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