1981–82 Detroit Pistons season

1981–82 Detroit Pistons season
Head coach	Scotty Robertson
General manager	Jack McCloskey
Owners	William Davidson
Arena	Pontiac Silverdome
Results
Record	39–43 (.476)
Place	Division: 3rd (Central) Conference: 7th (Eastern)
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

The 1981–82 NBA season was the Detroit Pistons' 34th season in the NBA and 25th season in the city of Detroit. The team played in the Detroit suburbs at the Pontiac Silverdome.

The Pistons had the second pick in the 1981 NBA draft and chose Isiah Thomas from Indiana, adding a future Hall of Fame player for the centerpiece of the rebuilding franchise. The team finished greatly improved, 39-43 (.476), 3rd in the Central Division, an 18-game improvement from the previous season. The team was led by a pair of rookies, guard Thomas (17.0 ppg, 7.8 apg, NBA All-Star, NBA All Rookie Team) and forward Kelly Tripucka (21.6 ppg, NBA All-Star, NBA All Rookie Team), along with guard John Long (21.9 ppg) The team also picked up center Bill Laimbeer (12.8 ppg, 11.3 rpg) in a trade with Cleveland and guard Vinnie Johnson from Seattle (7.7 ppg), two key components of future championship Piston teams.

Draft picks

Main article: 1981 NBA draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College
1	2	Isiah Thomas	PG	United States	Indiana
1	12	Kelly Tripucka	SF/SG	United States	Notre Dame

Roster

1981–82 Detroit Pistons roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB From C 54 Benson, Kent 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Indiana F 32 Carr, Kenny 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) NC State SG 24 Hardy, Alan 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Michigan C 52 Hayes, Steve 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Idaho State SG 10 Johnson, Vinnie 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Baylor F 42 Jones, Edgar 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Nevada F 22 Judkins, Jeff 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Utah C 40 Laimbeer, Bill 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 245 lb (111 kg) Notre Dame G 30 Lee, Ron 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 193 lb (88 kg) Oregon SG 25 Long, John 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Detroit Mercy PG 11 Thomas, Isiah 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Indiana F 7 Tripucka, Kelly 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Notre Dame G/F 41 Tyler, Terry 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Detroit Mercy

Head coach Scotty Robertson Assistant coach(es) Don Chaney Legend (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured

Regular season

Season standings

Central Division	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Div
y-Milwaukee Bucks	55	27	.671	–	31–10	24–17	24–6
x-Atlanta Hawks	42	40	.512	13.0	24–17	18–23	15–14
Detroit Pistons	39	43	.476	16.0	23–18	16–25	19–11
Indiana Pacers	35	47	.427	20.0	25–16	10–31	14–16
Chicago Bulls	34	48	.415	21.0	22–19	12–29	12–17
Cleveland Cavaliers	15	67	.183	40.0	9–32	6–35	5–25

#	Eastern Conference
	Team	W	L	PCT	GB
1	z-Boston Celtics	63	19	.768	–
2	y-Milwaukee Bucks	55	27	.671	8
3	x-Philadelphia 76ers	58	24	.707	5
4	x-New Jersey Nets	44	38	.537	19
5	x-Washington Bullets	43	39	.524	20
6	x-Atlanta Hawks	42	40	.512	21
7	Detroit Pistons	39	43	.476	24
8	Indiana Pacers	35	47	.427	28
9	Chicago Bulls	34	48	.415	29
10	New York Knicks	33	49	.402	30
11	Cleveland Cavaliers	15	67	.183	48

z - clinched division title

y - clinched division title

x - clinched playoff spot

Record vs. opponents

1981-82 NBA Records
Team	ATL	BOS	CHI	CLE	DAL	DEN	DET	GSW	HOU	IND	KCK	LAL	MIL	NJN	NYK	PHI	PHO	POR	SAS	SDC	SEA	UTA	WAS
Atlanta	—	1–5	2–3	4–2	1–1	1–1	2–4	0–2	2–0	4–2	1–1	0–2	3–3	3–2	5–1	3–3	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–4
Boston	5–1	—	4–2	5–0	2–0	1–1	6–0	1–1	1–1	4–1	2–0	1–1	3–3	5–1	5–1	4–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	0–2	2–0	6–0
Chicago	3–2	2–4	—	5–1	1–1	1–1	0–6	0–2	1–1	3–3	1–1	2–0	1–5	2–4	3–2	1–5	0–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	2–4
Cleveland	2–4	0–5	1–5	—	2–0	0–2	1–5	1–1	1–1	1–5	1–1	0–2	0–6	0–6	0–6	0–5	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	2–0	1–5
Dallas	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	—	1–5	1–1	0–5	2–4	1–1	4–2	1–4	1–1	2–0	1–1	0–2	2–3	2–3	1–5	2–3	1–4	3–3	1–1
Denver	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	5–1	—	1–1	3–2	5–1	0–2	4–2	1–4	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–3	2–3	2–4	5–0	2–3	3–3	2–0
Detroit	4–2	0–6	6–0	5–1	1–1	1–1	—	2–0	2–0	2–4	2–0	0–2	2–4	2–4	3–3	2–3	0–2	0–2	0–2	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–4
Golden State	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	5–0	2–3	0–2	—	1–4	2–0	3–2	3–3	2–0	1–1	1–1	0–2	4–2	2–4	3–2	5–1	1–5	3–2	1–1
Houston	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–2	1–5	0–2	4–1	—	2–0	3–3	1–4	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	3–2	4–1	3–3	4–1	2–3	6–0	2–0
Indiana	2–4	1–5	3–3	5–1	1–1	2–0	4–2	0–2	0–2	—	1–1	0–2	0–6	4–2	3–2	0–6	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–5
Kansas City	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	2–4	2–4	0–2	2–3	3–3	1–1	—	1–4	1–1	1–1	2–0	0–2	2–3	0–5	1–5	4–1	2–3	3–3	0–2
Los Angeles	2–0	1–1	0–2	2–0	4–1	4–1	2–0	3–3	4–1	2–0	4–1	—	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–1	4–2	5–1	2–3	5–1	4–2	5–0	2–0
Milwaukee	3–3	3–3	5–1	6–0	1–1	1–1	4–2	0–2	1–1	6–0	1–1	2–0	—	4–1	3–3	4–2	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	0–2	2–0	3–2
New Jersey	2–3	1–5	4–2	6–0	0–2	1–1	4–2	1–1	1–1	2–4	1–1	1–1	1–4	—	4–2	3–3	2–0	1–1	1–1	2–0	0–2	2–0	4–2
New York	1–5	1–5	2–3	6–0	1–1	1–1	3–3	1–1	1–1	2–3	0–2	2–0	3–3	2–4	—	1–5	0–2	1–1	0–2	2–0	0–2	2–0	1–5
Philadelphia	3–3	2–4	5–1	5–0	2–0	1–1	3–2	2–0	1–1	6–0	2–0	1–1	2–4	3–3	5–1	—	1–1	2–0	0–2	2–0	2–0	2–0	6–0
Phoenix	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	3–2	3–2	2–0	2–4	2–3	1–1	3–2	2–4	1–1	0–2	2–0	1–1	—	3–3	4–1	4–2	3–3	3–2	1–1
Portland	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	3–2	3–2	2–0	4–2	1–4	1–1	5–0	1–5	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	3–3	—	3–2	4–2	3–3	4–1	0–2
San Antonio	1–1	0–2	1–1	2–0	5–1	4–2	2–0	2–3	3–3	0–2	5–1	3–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–4	2–3	—	3–2	4–1	3–3	1–1
San Diego	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	3–2	0–5	0–2	1–5	1–4	0–2	1–4	1–5	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	2–4	2–4	2–3	—	1–5	1–4	0–2
Seattle	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	4–1	3–2	1–1	5–1	3–2	1–1	3–2	2–4	2–0	2–0	2–0	0–2	3–3	3–3	1–4	5–1	—	5–0	1–1
Utah	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	3–3	3–3	1–1	2–3	0–6	1–1	3–3	0–5	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	2–3	1–4	3–3	4–1	0–5	—	1–1
Washington	4–2	0–6	4–2	5–1	1–1	0–2	4–1	1–1	0–2	5–1	2–0	0–2	2–3	2–4	5–1	0–6	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	—

Game log

Regular season

1981–82 game log Total: 39–43 (Home: 23–18; Road: 16–25)
October: 2–0 (home: 1–0; road: 1–0) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 1 October 30 Milwaukee W 118–113 Pontiac Silverdome 1–0 2 October 31 @ Chicago
November: 6–7 (home: 4–3; road: 2–4) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 3 November 5 New Jersey W 109–103 Pontiac Silverdome 3–0 4 November 6 @ Washington L 82–86 Capital Centre 3–1 5 November 7 Boston L 88–129 Pontiac Silverdome 3–2 6 November 10 Philadelphia L 93–95 Pontiac Silverdome 3–3 7 November 12 Cleveland 8 November 14 @ Atlanta W 117–104 The Omni 5–3 9 November 18 @ Cleveland 10 November 19 Washington W 122–97 Pontiac Silverdome 6–4 11 November 21 Utah 12 November 24 @ Milwaukee L 95–103 MECCA Arena 7–5 13 November 25 @ Kansas City 14 November 27 Atlanta L 112–114 (OT) Pontiac Silverdome 8–6 15 November 28 @ Philadelphia L 103–116 The Spectrum 8–7
December: 5–10 (home: 2–3; road: 3–7) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 16 December 1 @ New York 17 December 2 @ Boston L 114–115 Boston Garden 8–9 18 December 4 @ Indiana 19 December 5 Milwaukee L 108–111 Pontiac Silverdome 8–11 20 December 10 New York 21 December 12 @ Seattle L 111–117 Kingdome 8–13 22 December 13 @ Portland 23 December 15 @ Golden State 24 December 17 Indiana 25 December 19 New York 26 December 22 @ Dallas 27 December 23 @ Denver W 124–119 McNichols Sports Arena 12–15 28 December 26 Chicago 29 December 29 @ Washington L 125–129 Capital Centre 13–16 30 December 30 @ New Jersey L 119–130 Brendan Byrne Arena 13–17
January: 5–9 (home: 2–4; road: 3–5) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 31 January 2 @ New York 32 January 5 Philadelphia W 124–101 Pontiac Silverdome 14–18 33 January 7 Phoenix L 94–110 Pontiac Silverdome 14–19 34 January 9 Los Angeles L 127–130 Pontiac Silverdome 14–20 35 January 10 @ Boston L 124–134 Hartford Civic Center 14–21 36 January 12 @ Chicago 37 January 14 Washington L 114–121 Pontiac Silverdome 15–22 38 January 16 Boston L 120–128 Pontiac Silverdome 15–23 39 January 17 @ Milwaukee W 108–103 MECCA Arena 16–23 40 January 19 @ Utah 41 January 21 @ San Diego 42 January 22 @ Los Angeles L 111–123 The Forum 17–25 43 January 23 @ Phoenix L 90–113 Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum 17–26 44 January 27 Atlanta W 108–107 Pontiac Silverdome 18–26
February: 7–6 (home: 5–3; road: 2–3) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 45 February 2 @ Atlanta W 106–105 The Omni 19–26 46 February 5 @ Chicago 47 February 6 New Jersey L 120–125 Pontiac Silverdome 20–27 48 February 9 Chicago 49 February 10 @ New Jersey L 108–115 Brendan Byrne Arena 21–28 50 February 11 Cleveland 51 February 13 Portland 52 February 16 Houston W 111–109 Pontiac Silverdome 23–29 53 February 17 @ San Antonio L 112–126 HemisFair Arena 23–30 54 February 20 Indiana 55 February 25 San Antonio L 116–119 Pontiac Silverdome 24–31 56 February 27 Kansas City 57 February 28 @ Indiana
March: 9–7 (home: 5–2; road: 4–5) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 58 March 2 @ Milwaukee L 91–101 MECCA Arena 25–33 59 March 4 Chicago 60 March 6 @ New York 61 March 8 Boston L 101–111 Pontiac Silverdome 27–34 62 March 10 Denver L 113–124 Pontiac Silverdome 27–35 63 March 12 Golden State 64 March 14 @ Cleveland 65 March 16 San Diego 66 March 18 Seattle W 119–115 Pontiac Silverdome 31–35 67 March 19 @ Houston W 111–102 The Summit 32–35 68 March 21 @ Atlanta L 111–119 The Omni 32–36 69 March 25 Philadelphia W 100–98 Pontiac Silverdome 33–36 70 March 26 @ Boston L 104–125 Boston Garden 33–37 71 March 27 @ New Jersey W 123–121 Brendan Byrne Arena 34–37 72 March 30 @ Washington L 98–127 Capital Centre 34–38 73 March 31 @ Indiana
April: 5–4 (home: 4–3; road: 1–1) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 74 April 1 Dallas 75 April 3 Indiana 76 April 7 Atlanta W 120–115 Pontiac Silverdome 36–40 77 April 9 Milwaukee L 100–118 Pontiac Silverdome 36–41 78 April 11 New York 79 April 14 @ Philadelphia L 111–119 The Spectrum 37–42 80 April 15 Cleveland 81 April 17 New Jersey L 132–147 Pontiac Silverdome 38–43 82 April 18 @ Cleveland
1981–82 schedule

Player 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

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Kent Benson	75	72	32.9	.505	.273	.804	8.7	2.1	.88	1.30	12.5
Kenny Carr	28	6	15.9	.458	.000	.646	4.9	.8	.21	.21	7.4
Glenn Hagan	4	0	6.3	.429	.000	1.000	1.0	2.0	.33	.00	1.8
Alan Hardy	38	0	8.2	.456	.000	.621	0.9	.5	.24	.11	3.7
Steve Hayes	26	0	15.8	.495	.000	.610	3.8	.9	.12	.69	4.5
Phil Hubbard	52	38	21.2	.505	.000	.650	5.2	1.3	.73	.31	10.0
Vinnie Johnson	67	15	17.8	.493	.273	.754	2.1	2.4	.75	.34	7.7
Edgar Jones	48	19	16.7	.548	.500	.698	4.3	.8	.58	1.92	7.8
Jeff Judkins	30	0	8.4	.383	.100	.615	1.1	.5	.20	.67	2.6
Greg Kesler	11	0	16.6	.407	.000	.659	3.5	1.1	.45	.64	8.8
Bill Laimbeer	30	30	31.2	.516	.143	.813	11.3	1.8	.57	1.13	12.8
Ron Lee	81	7	18.1	.358	.305	.706	1.9	3.9	1.43	.25	3.4
John Long	69	66	32.0	.492	.133	.865	3.7	2.1	.94	.36	21.9
Paul Mokeski	39	3	13.4	.441	.000	.758	3.1	.6	.33	.59	3.2
Isiah Thomas	72	72	33.8	.424	.288	.704	2.9	7.8	2.08	.24	17.0
Kelly Tripucka	82	82	37.5	.496	.227	.797	5.4	3.3	1.09	.25	21.6
Terry Tyler	82	0	24.3	.523	.250	.740	6.0	5.4	.94	1.95	9.9
Larry Wright	1	0	6.0	.000	.000	.000	.0	.0	.0	.0	.0

Awards and records

• Isiah Thomas, NBA All-Rookie Team 1st Team
• Kelly Tripucka, NBA All-Rookie Team 1st Team

See also

• 1981-82 NBA season