The Detroit Lions’ major owner, Sheila Hamp, is fortunate that after decades of inactivity, she has finally uncovered the key to turning around an NFL team’s fortunes. In contrast to Tom Gores, the owner of the Detroit Pistons, who manages his basketball team like a part-time amateur, Hamp has access to the cultural foundation required for success in both on and off the court. Once it became clear that the organization’s culture needed to be addressed from the top down and a football brand the fans could get behind, ownership laid out a plan to try another rebuild..
Chris Spielman, a former linebacker with the Lions, epitomizes the tough, no-nonsense, hard-nosed fan base. The team hired general manager Brad Holmes and head coach Dan Campbell after consulting with him, and they developed an inclusive and cooperative culture. The 2022 Lions faced intense criticism from the outset of the season. During regular business hours, Hamp addressed the fan base in front of television cameras; he did not dare wait until a Friday night to assemble media representatives in a traditional effort at a news dump.
After being on the losing end of the scoreboard for 25 straight games, the Pistons are on the cusp of breaking the NBA record (28) for consecutive losses.
“Even if we were to win a couple more games, how many of those games should we have won? Three or four, perhaps? Who is aware of that number? However, we’re not organized as well as we should be,” Gores told reporters, as cited by Mlive. “So, in no way are we fooling each other that we are there,” Regretfully, for the Pistons and their management, there is now very little faith that they can actually do anything significant other than throwing t-shirts into the stands. It is evident that Gores has a leadership team that rarely or never responds, and only steps in once the structure has collapsed and significant damage has been done.
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