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Joe Dumars

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Joe Dumars
Dumars in 2005
Personal information
Born (1963-05-24) May 24, 1963 (age 61)
Shreveport, Louisiana
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Listed weight195 lb (88 kg)
Career information
High schoolNatchitoches Central
(Natchitoches, Louisiana)
CollegeMcNeese State (1981–1985)
NBA draft1985: 1st round, 18th overall pick
Selected by the Detroit Pistons
Playing career1985–1999
PositionShooting guard / Point guard
Number4
Career history
1985–1999Detroit Pistons
Career highlights and awards
As player:

As executive:

Career statistics
Points16,401 (16.1 ppg)
Rebounds2,203 (2.2 rpg)
Assists4,612 (4.5 apg)
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference
Basketball Hall of Fame
Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  United States
FIBA World Championship
Gold medal – first place 1994 Canada Team competition

Joe Dumars III (/ˈduːmɑːrz/ DOO-marz; born May 24, 1963) is an American professional basketball executive and former player who is the executive vice president and head of basketball operations of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He could play either shooting guard or point guard on offense and was a highly effective defender. He played his entire fourteen-year career with the Detroit Pistons. During the late 1980s and early 1990s, Dumars and Isiah Thomas combined to form one of the best backcourts in NBA history.[1][2][3][4] Initially a shooting guard, Dumars moved to point guard following Thomas' retirement in 1994, sharing ball-handling duties with Grant Hill. Dumars was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006. Dumars served as the president of basketball operations for the Pistons from 2000 to 2014.

Early life

Dumars was born in Shreveport, Louisiana. Dumars' mother, Ophelia, was a custodian at Northwestern State University in Natchitoches while his father, Joe Dumars Jr. (Big Joe), was a truck driver.[5]

Dumars grew up in an athletic family and he actually preferred football as a child, as all five of his brothers were defensive standouts at Natchitoches Central High School. His brother David later played professional football in the USFL. Dumars played defensive back on the football team until junior high school when a big hit on the field directed him toward basketball. His father built a hoop in the backyard, where Dumars would practice his jump shot.[5]

Playing career

During his four years at McNeese State University, Dumars averaged 22.5 points per game, including 25.8 points per game as a senior – good for sixth in the nation. He finished his college career as the 11th leading scorer in NCAA history.

Drafted 18th overall in the first round of the 1985 NBA draft, he played guard for the Detroit Pistons for his entire career, from 1985 to 1999. He won two championships as a player in 1989 and 1990, and was voted the 1989 Finals MVP, averaging 27.3 points per game as the Pistons swept the Los Angeles Lakers in four games. The following year, he won accolades during the Eastern Conference Finals when, with Dennis Rodman, he was a cornerstone of coach Chuck Daly's "Jordan Rules" defensive playbook, which forced the Chicago Bulls to change their offensive strategy to include less of Michael Jordan and more of the other members of the team. According to Jordan, Dumars was the best defender he ever faced in the NBA.

In the 1990 NBA Finals against the Portland Trail Blazers, Dumars averaged 20.6 points, including 33 points in a pivotal Game 3 win that took place the same day his father had died. With his father's death imminent, Dumars had instructed his wife, Debbie, not to tell him any news about his condition until after the game. However, Debbie did tell Isiah Thomas, who told the rest of the team. After the game, Thomas spoke about an off-balance prayer Dumars tossed up that somehow went in the basket, saying his first thought was, "Your father put that one in, Joe."[6]

During his career, he was selected to the All-Star team six times, and to the All-Defensive first team four times. In 14 seasons, all with the Pistons, Dumars scored 16,401 points, handed out 4,612 assists, grabbed 2,203 rebounds and recorded 902 steals.

Although he was a member of the famed "Bad Boys" teams known for their aggressive play and demeanor, he became personally known for his quiet and upstanding behavior. He was the first recipient of the NBA Sportsmanship Award which has been named the Joe Dumars Trophy.

His number 4 jersey was retired by the Pistons in March 2000. He has the distinction as being the only Pistons player to ever wear this number since moving to Detroit.

He played for the US national team in the 1994 FIBA World Championship, winning the gold medal.[7]

NBA career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
 †  Won an NBA championship  *  Led the league

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1985–86 Detroit 82 45 23.9 .481 .313 .798 1.5 4.8 .8 .1 9.4
1986–87 Detroit 79 75 30.9 .493 .409 .748 2.1 4.5 1.1 .1 11.8
1987–88 Detroit 82 82* 33.3 .472 .211 .815 2.4 4.7 1.1 .2 14.2
1988–89† Detroit 69 67 34.9 .505 .483 .850 2.5 5.7 .9 .1 17.2
1989–90† Detroit 75 71 34.4 .480 .400 .900 2.8 4.9 .8 .0 17.8
1990–91 Detroit 80 80 38.1 .481 .311 .890 2.3 5.5 1.1 .1 20.4
1991–92 Detroit 82 82* 38.9 .448 .408 .867 2.3 4.6 .9 .1 19.9
1992–93 Detroit 77 77 40.2 .466 .375 .864 1.9 4.0 1.0 .1 23.5
1993–94 Detroit 69 69 37.6 .452 .388 .836 2.2 3.8 .9 .1 20.4
1994–95 Detroit 67 67 38.0 .430 .305 .805 2.4 5.5 1.1 .1 18.1
1995–96 Detroit 67 40 32.7 .426 .406 .822 2.1 4.0 .6 .0 11.8
1996–97 Detroit 79 79 37.0 .440 .432 .867 2.4 4.0 .7 .0 14.7
1997–98 Detroit 72 72 32.3 .416 .371 .825 1.4 3.5 .6 .0 13.1
1998–99 Detroit 38 38 29.4 .411 .403 .836 1.8 3.5 .6 .1 11.3
Career 1,018 944 34.5 .460 .382 .843 2.2 4.5 .9 .1 16.1
All-Star 6 1 16.3 .400 .333 .500 1.2 3.4 .2 .0 5.7

Playoffs

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1986 Detroit 4 4 36.8 .610 — .667 3.3 6.3 1.0 .0 15.0
1987 Detroit 15 15 31.5 .538 .667 .780 1.3 4.8 .8 .1 12.7
1988 Detroit 23 23 35.0 .457 .333 .889 2.2 4.9 .6 .1 12.3
1989† Detroit 17 17 36.5 .455 .083 .861 2.6 5.6 .7 .1 17.6
1990† Detroit 20 20 37.7 .458 .263 .876 2.2 4.8 1.1 .0 18.2
1991 Detroit 15 15 39.2 .429 .405 .845 3.3 4.1 1.1 .1 20.6
1992 Detroit 5 5 44.2 .471 .500 .789 1.6 3.2 1.0 .2 16.8
1996 Detroit 3 3 41.0 .457 .357 1.000 4.3 3.7 .0 .0 13.7
1997 Detroit 5 5 42.8 .361 .261 .950 1.8 2.0 1.0 .0 13.8
1999 Detroit 5 5 30.6 .487 .526 1.000 1.4 2.6 .4 .0 10.2
Career 112 112 36.6 .462 .358 .855 2.3 4.6 .8 .1 15.6

NBA executive career

Dumars became the Pistons' president of basketball operations prior to the start of the 2000–01 season.[8] He was voted the league's Executive of the Year for the 2002–03 season and quietly went on to build the team that won the 2004 NBA championship. With the win, Dumars became the first African American executive to lead a team to an NBA championship.[9][10] During the 2005–06 season, the Pistons had its best regular season record in franchise history (64–18).[11] The Pistons made it to the Eastern Conference Finals six straight years (2003–2008) under Dumars' watch.[12] This streak would come to an end in the 2008–09 season when the Pistons were swept in the first round by the Cleveland Cavaliers.[13]

On February 9, 2014, Dumars fired Maurice Cheeks as head coach and appointed John Loyer as interim head coach.[14][15] On April 14, 2014, the Pistons announced that Dumars would step down as president of basketball operations, yet remain as an advisor to the organization and its ownership team. During his 14 years as President, Dumars guided the organization to a 595–536 (.527) regular-season record, 73 playoff wins, six Eastern Conference Finals appearances (2003–08), six Central Division titles, two Eastern Conference Championships (2004 and 2005), and the 2004 NBA championship.[11]

On June 21, 2019, Dumars was named special advisor to the general manager of the Sacramento Kings.[16] On August 14, 2020, Dumars was named interim executive vice president of basketball operations.[17] On September 17, 2020, he was named chief strategy officer.[18]

On May 2, 2022, Dumars was named the executive vice president and head of basketball operations of the NBA.[19]

Business interests

Dumars was majority owner as well as CEO and President of Detroit Technologies for approximately 10 years. Founded by Dumars in 1996, Detroit Technologies is an automotive supply company. He sold off his interest in the company in 2006 to pursue other business interests and focus on his role as Pistons' president of basketball operations.[20]

Dumars is the founder and owner of the Joe Dumars Fieldhouse, an indoor sports and entertainment facility located in Shelby Township and Detroit.[21] The Shelby Township location permanently closed in August 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[22]

In August 2017, Dumars joined Independent Sports & Entertainment, an integrated sports, media and entertainment management agency, as president of its basketball division.[23]

See also

References

  1. ^ "ESPN Lists 2 Pistons Duos In Top 10 Backcourts Of NBA History". CBS Detroit. May 22, 2015. Retrieved June 14, 2021.
  2. ^ Kerber, Fred (June 4, 2016). "Debating best backcourts ever: Are Curry, Thompson No. 1?". New York Post. Retrieved June 14, 2021.
  3. ^ Nelson, Ryne (April 26, 2017). "John Wall Compares Himself and Bradley Beal to Isiah Thomas and Joe Dumars". Slam. Retrieved June 14, 2021.
  4. ^ Barney, Chuck (December 21, 2018). "Warriors' Splash Brothers meet the Bad Boys in new TV special". The Mercury News. Retrieved June 14, 2021.
  5. ^ a b "Legends profile: Joe Dumars". NBA.com. August 24, 2017. Retrieved June 24, 2019.
  6. ^ Albom, Mitch (June 11, 1990). "A SAD FAREWELL TO THE HERO'S HERO". mitchalbom.com. Retrieved February 11, 2021.
  7. ^ 1994 USA Basketball Archived November 26, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ Martin, Susan (June 7, 2000). "Pistons Name Irvine, Dumars". The Buffalo News. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
  9. ^ "Detroit's Dumars Named Executive of the Year". NBA.com. May 14, 2003. Archived from the original on August 30, 2017. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
  10. ^ "Kings Name Joe Dumars as Special Advisor to General Manager". NBA.com. June 21, 2019. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
  11. ^ a b "Detroit Pistons Announce Organizational Changes". NBA.com. April 14, 2014. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
  12. ^ "ECF: Make It Six Straight". NBA.com. May 13, 2008. Archived from the original on November 19, 2010. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
  13. ^ "LeBron takes control as Cavaliers sweep up Pistons". ESPN.com. Associated Press. April 26, 2009. Archived from the original on April 22, 2019. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
  14. ^ "Detroit Pistons Relieve Maurice Cheeks of Head Coaching Duties". NBA.com. February 9, 2014. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
  15. ^ Mayo, David (February 9, 2014). "Pistons owner Tom Gores: Poor progress under Mo Cheeks; John Loyer interim coach". MLive. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
  16. ^ "Kings Name Joe Dumars as Special Advisor to General Manager". NBA.com. June 21, 2019. Retrieved June 21, 2019.
  17. ^ Jay, Tracee (August 14, 2020). "Vlade Divac Steps Down as Kings GM Joe Dumars Named Interim EVP of Basketball Operations". NBA.com. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
  18. ^ Kings Name Joe Dumars Chief Strategy Officer
  19. ^ "Joe Dumars named Executive Vice President, Head of Basketball Operations". NBA.com. May 2, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  20. ^ Snavely, Brent (September 5, 2006). "Dumars sells stake in Detroit Technologies". Crain's Detroit Business. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
  21. ^ VanderHart, Dirk (August 12, 2004). "Joe Dumars' Fieldhouse creates nonprofit youth foundation". Crain's Detroit Business. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
  22. ^ Hotts, Mitch; Pohly, George (August 27, 2020). "Shuttered Joe Dumars Fieldhouse to host liquidation sale". Macomb Daily. Retrieved April 27, 2022.
  23. ^ Beard, Rod (August 1, 2017). "Ex-Pistons great Joe Dumars joins sports agency". The Detroit News. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
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