Detroit Pistons: Top 10 NBA Draft picks in franchise history

(Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images)
(Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 11
Next
Photo credit should read STAN HONDA/AFP/Getty Images
Photo credit should read STAN HONDA/AFP/Getty Images /

10. Allan Houston (SG) — No. 11 pick in 1993 NBA Draft

Career stats (with the Pistons):  237 GP, 14.3 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 2.2 APG, 0.7 SPG, 0.2 BPG, 1.9 TOV, 44.5 FG%, 41.0 3P%, 83.3 FT%.

Honorable mention: Lindsey Hunter (SG) – No. 10 pick in 1993 NBA Draft
Career stats (with the Pistons): 703 GP, 9.0 PPG, 2.9 APG, 2.3 RPG,1.3 SPG, 0.2 BPG, 1.4 TOV, 39.3 FG%, 36.0 3P%, 75.2 FT%

The Pistons drafted Lindsey Hunter and Allan Houston with consecutive picks in the 1993 NBA Draft. Even though Hunter played in Detroit significantly longer, Houston gets the nod at No. 10 because his numbers are better. However, Hunter does deserve and gets an honorable mention.

Allan Houston’s departure from Detroit is a classic example of the Pistons being the Pistons and shooting themselves in the foot. Three years after drafting him, the Pistons let him slip through their fingers in free agency. Houston signed with the New York Knicks in the summer of 1996 after being low-balled by Detroit.

More from Detroit Pistons

He was on pace to put up some of the best numbers in franchise history before parting ways with the Pistons. He played in 237 games with the team, adding 3,386 points, 156 steals and 43 blocks during his time in Detroit.

Houston’s numbers increased in each of his three seasons with the Pistons.  He averaged 19.7 points per game while making 42.7 percent of his 3-point attempts in his final season with Detroit.

During his stint there, he averaged 14.3 points and made 41 percent of his 3-pointers. Houston’s best season as a pro came with the Knicks in 2002-03, when he averaged 22.4 points and led the NBA in free throw shooting at 91.9 percent. Houston played in two All-Star Games for New York and won a Gold Medal in with USA Basketball during the 2000 Olympics in Sydney.

Imagine the possibilities of Grant Hill and Houston wearing Pistons’ uniforms as they reached their NBA primes together.