Detroit Tigers and Red Wings owner Mike Ilitch first showed his love for sports when he was cranking up his Little Caesars Pizza chain of restaurants back in the 70’s and he gave back to Detroit by sponsoring elite hockey teams from the Mite to the Junior divisions.

As an onslaught of investors helped him expand his pizza-flipping business, Little Caesars evolved to a successful enough chain for the mogul to fork over about $8 million to purchase the Red Wings in the 1980’s. After adding the Tigers, historic Fox Theatre and the Motor City casino to his collection, Ilitch now is hot on purchasing the Detroit Pistons which would make him a Trifecta owner of pro sports teams.

Detroiters are holding their breath as they await the outcome of this Pistons’ sale. Ilitch actually jumped on board when talk of the possibility of moving the team out of Detroit began to circulate through the sports gossip world.

In a recent interview, Ilitch showed his passion for his hometown and why he is the right guy to own the team.

“When I read in the paper there was the chance that this great sports town could lose one of its professional sports franchises, I just didn’t see how we could let that happen. The Pistons, just like the Red Wings, Tigers and the Lions, have a rich and storied tradition in this community.”

Ilitch was born in the Detroit area and has been very instrumental in rebuilding the downtown area over the past few decades. With ex-Pistons star Dave Bing currently sitting in the Mayor’s seat in Motown, Ilitch buying the team feels as sure as a LeBron James slam-dunk.

Ilitch is said to have presented a bid to Karen Davidson, current owner of the team, and there is no formal deadline for that bid to be accepted or rejected. Davidson did however comment how she expects the deal to be done before this upcoming NBA season meaning the docs would be signed and a deal approved before October.

The NBA does have a multifarious procedure for selling a team. After the current owner takes bids, the prospective owners get grilled by the league’s Board of Governors to confirm the buyer has the funds and no skeletons in his closet.

We have to assume Ilitch is clean since in today’s day and age of Internet scandals we certainly would have heard and seen any gossip news on him by now. So it would just be a matter of the pizza mogul’s bid being acceptable to Davidson and him showing her the money.

After he would pass that hurdle, the 30 NBA owners would then vote on the sale.

If Ilitch succeeds in obtaining the team, it would be the second time an owner has pulled that off. The other happened in Atlanta when Ted Turner owned the Atlanta Braves, NBA Hawks and NHL Thrashers.

Final note, Forbes estimates the Pistons’ worth as the 4^th highest in the NBA at $479 million.

Copyright © 2010 Sports Climax, LLC

Cleveland Cavaliers LeBron James put on a show in a 113-101 victory over the Detroit Pistons at the Palace in Auburn Hills, Michigan.

After scoring only five points in the first half, James came out after the break and took over the game, finishing with a triple-double; 29 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists. It was James’ 4th triple double of the season.

Fifteen of those points would come in the 4th quarter during a 22-10 game finishing run.

The win improved the Cavs record to (53-15) while the Pistons who were a force over the past decade fell to a dismal (23-45). The Pistons continue their spiral and have dropped three in a row and eight out of the last ten games.

James, who added a nice piece of hardware to his cabinet after winning the NBA MVP award in 2009, still is in pursuit of an NBA title. James is a free agent after this season and the organization has brought in several players over the years trying to find the right chemistry to bring a title to Cleveland.

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax™ 

DETROIT – Chauncey Billups returns to the Motor City tonight to play against his former team the Detroit Pistons for the first time since he was traded to the Denver Nuggets in November.Mr. Big Shot who has been a permanent fixture at the Palace through several years of playoff runs that include an NBA Championship is sure to be greeted by raucous applause by the Pistons fans, many who are still shaking off the aftershocks caused by the trade that thus far has destructed the team.

Billups one of the NBA’s most unselfish leaders was one of the most consistent performers in Pistons history and was considered one of Motown’s biggest sports heroes.
Allen Iverson who came to the Pistons as part of the Billups trade has been criticized for his inconsistent play and attitude issues as the Pistons are struggling to hold onto the #6 playoff spot with a 24-24 record.

Pistons President Joe Dumars has an excellent history of deal-making but the timing of Billups’ return will be a reminder to the team and fans that even Dumars is prone to make mistakes.

While the Pistons are a dismal 23-29 with A.I.in the line-up, Billups has led his Nuggets to a 39-21 record and currently sit in the #3 spot in the Western Conference.

To add insult to injury, the Pistons just defeated the #2 seed Boston Celtics and #3 seed Orlando Magic without A.I. in the line-up.

Billups says the Pistons will be fine and Joe Dumars will figure it all out and get them back on track. When asked how things would be if he were still in Detroit he responded, “We’d be the top one or two in the East and probably in basketball, like we always are.”

Copyright © 2009 – Sports Climax

#10 You know ahead of time you can plan family vacations just before the Finals.

#9 You will never have the most technical fouls on the team. (Google ‘Rasheed Wallace’)

#8 You get to hang out at a Palace with a guy named Prince.

#7 Great chance of attending a victory parade next year . . . (Google ‘Red Wings’).

#6 If you don’t like a coach, relax, every few years you get a new one.

#5 Where else can you refuse a coaches order to go into a game and get away with it. (Google ‘Ben Wallace’)

#4 There are great housing deals.

#3 If you’re ever accused of under-achieving, you can divert the attention to the Lions and Tigers.

#2 There’s no pressure to perform-a coach drove through a Wendy’s naked and is still with the team. (Google idiot Lions Coach Joe Cullen busted for driving thru Wendys naked’)

#1 If you decide to look for another line of work, the Mayor’s position is open soon.

Copyright © 2008 – Sports Climax