The Pistons are "ready to announce their return to downtown Detroit," as they will "move into the still-being-built Little Caesars Arena next season," according to a front-page piece by Vince Ellis of the DETROIT FREE PRESS. Sources said that an official announcement "will come" at 3:00pm ET today. The agreement between the Pistons and the Red Wings likely "goes beyond where the Pistons will call home." The Pistons will "eventually sign a lease to move downtown and play in Little Caesars Arena," which is scheduled to open next fall. Early speculation is the lease terms "will be for 25 years, but that’s unclear." They will "move corporate offices, basketball operations and build a practice facility downtown at a still-to-be-determined site." The entities will also "likely join forces and combine the concert businesses" of Palace Sports & Entertainment and Olympia Entertainment. PS&E is the umbrella organization "over the Pistons, the Palace and other music venues." Meanwhile, a future area of cooperation "could come in the merger of the media rights of the Tigers, Red Wings and Pistons, which could eventually materialize" into an RSN similar to YES Network. Talks "have been under way for most of the year, but things were expedited" when Pistons Owner Tom Gores met informally with Ilitch Holdings President & CEO Chris Ilitch at a Pistons game "toward the end of last season." Little Caesars Arena was "designed with home and visiting basketball locker rooms and facilities for expected college basketball events, but will have to be modified for NBA specifications." Since '09, the Pistons have "finished in the bottom six in NBA attendance for five straight seasons" (DETROIT FREE PRESS, 11/22).
TALKIN' BOUT PRACTICE! In Detroit, Kirk Pinho cited sources as saying that a 60,000-square-foot practice facility north of Little Caesars Arena is "on the radar for the team." The precise location is not known, but sources have said that there are "two unspecified spots under consideration." Sources added that the practice facility location "will not be announced as negotiations continue on whether the Detroit Medical Center or the Henry Ford Health System will provide medical services to Pistons players." Which organization ultimately provides those services will be "key in determining where the practice facility will go" (CRAINSDETROIT.com, 11/21).
