15 stars you forgot played for the Detroit Pistons

14. Dwight ‘Dike’ Eddleman

Try to find a more accomplished athlete in the Pistons’ history book than the late Dike Eddleman.

At the University of Illinois, Eddleman (second from left in the photo) led the basketball team to the program’s first Final Four appearance in 1949 and was a two-time All-American small forward.

As a receiver, punter and kick returner on the football field, he led the Fighting Illini to its first Rose Bowl appearance in 1947.

Eddleman was also a track and field star. He won an NCAA championship in the high jump, and at the 1948 Olympics in London, he won a silver medal in the same event.

He accomplished all of that despite his college career being interrupted by World War II, during which Eddleman served in the Army.

Eddleman could have gone pro in multiple sports — Major League Baseball teams were after him even though he didn’t play baseball — but he chose basketball. He only played four years in the NBA, but he was a two-time All-Star in his brief career.

The Milwaukee (now Atlanta) Hawks traded Eddleman to the Fort Wayne Pistons in 1952, on the same day that he played in his second All-Star Game.

Eddleman’s stats and playing time dropped significantly with the Pistons, as he averaged 8.5 points and 3.2 rebounds per game over parts of two seasons. He did help the Pistons make the playoffs twice.

In 1954, at the age of 31, Eddleman retired from the sport and got into the soybean processing business.