Detroit Pistons: Top 10 NBA Draft picks in franchise history

9. John Salley (PF/C) — No. 11 pick in 1986 NBA Draft

Career stats (with the Pistons):  459 GP, 12.7 PPG, 4.9 APG, 2.7 RPG, 1.4 SPG, 0.3 BPG, 1.8 TOV, 44.6 FG%, 36.0 3P%, 86.8 FT%

John Salley wasn’t the flashiest player to wear a Pistons’ uniform, but he personified the spirit of the team. Salley provided the inside presence and defense the Pistons needed to make a championship run.

Salley’s blue-collar work ethic provided the perfect backdrop for the team’s back-to-back championships in 1989 and 1990.

The Pistons drafted Salley in the first round of the 1986 NBA Draft.  He didn’t have great numbers, but the team rolled the dice using the 11th pick of the draft on the big man out of Georgia Tech.

Walk into any sports bar in Detroit and you will quickly discover the hearts of Pistons’ fans still belong to four-time NBA Champion John “Spider” Salley. They believe he is worthy of a place among the NBA greats in the Hall of Fame. Leave the confines of Motown and the argument isn’t such an open and shut case.

Salley was the first player in NBA history to win championships with three different franchises, (Robert Horry is the second). Salley won two rings with the Detroit Pistons (1989 and 1990), one with the Chicago Bulls (1996), and one with the Los Angeles Lakers (2000).

He was also the first player to hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy as a player in three different decades. Tim Duncan is the only other player to accomplish the feat. Salley often boasts his championship run spans two millenniums.

His defensive play makes him one of the most beloved Pistons and top 10 draft picks in franchise history.