Sports · born 1982Carlos Delfinobasketball player, small forward / shooting guardThe first Argentine ever picked in the first round of the NBA draft, Delfino spent three seasons with the Pistons known for his defense and three-point shooting.DETROIT / A living lexicon / ¼
Famous Detroiters
People who were born here, moved here or built their careers in Detroit: musicians, carmakers, athletes, writers, inventors, civil-rights leaders and a few notorious names. With their dates, their Detroit story and the places where they lived, worked and played, closed ones included.
- 1,940 famous people
- 366 Detroit places
- 19 fields
Hungarian ties 22 Detroiters with Hungarian ties →
Field
Connection
Born in
A–Z (family name)
27 people
Clear filtersSports · born 1982Carlos Delfinobasketball player, small forward / shooting guardThe first Argentine ever picked in the first round of the NBA draft, Delfino spent three seasons with the Pistons known for his defense and three-point shooting.
Sports · born 1963Joe Dumarsbasketball player and executiveHall of Fame Pistons guard who won two championships as a "Bad Boy" and a third as team president, and stayed in Detroit for decades running local businesses.
Sports · born 1978Pavel Datsyukice hockey forwardRussian forward known as "the Magic Man", drafted 171st overall by the Red Wings in 1998, who spent his entire 14-season NHL career in Detroit and won two Stanley Cups.
Sports · 1930–2009Chuck Dalybasketball coachHead coach of the "Bad Boys" Pistons who won back-to-back NBA championships in 1989 and 1990, then coached the 1992 Olympic Dream Team.
Sports · born 1987Meryl Davisice dancer, Olympic championRoyal Oak-born ice dancer who, with childhood friend Charlie White, trained in metro Detroit and won America's first Olympic ice-dance gold in 2014.
Sports · born 1993Andre Drummondbasketball player, centerDominant rebounder who spent eight seasons anchoring the Pistons' frontcourt, becoming the franchise's all-time leader in offensive rebounds and a two-time NBA All-Star.
Sports · 1940–2003Dave DeBusscherebasketball player and coach, baseball playerDetroit-born Hall of Famer who starred for the Pistons, became the youngest head coach in NBA history at 24, and later won two championships with the New York Knicks.
Sports · born 1987Luigi Datomebasketball playerItalian forward who spent two seasons with the Pistons, including a brief D-League assignment, before returning to star in Europe.
Sports · born 1955Adrian Dantleybasketball player, coachHall of Fame forward and two-time NBA scoring champion who spent three seasons with the Pistons, acquired in the trade that later brought Mark Aguirre to Detroit's first championship.
Sports · 1940–2023Terry Dischingerbasketball player, forward1963 Rookie of the Year and three-time All-Star who played six seasons for the Pistons across two stints, sharing the frontcourt with Hall of Famers Dave Bing and Bob Lanier.
Sports · born 1993Spencer Dinwiddiebasketball player, guardGuard who spent his first two NBA seasons developing with the Pistons before becoming a regular rotation player, and later a well-known scorer, elsewhere in the league.
Sports · born 1951Marcel Dionneice hockey centreHall of Fame centre who began his 18-season NHL career in Detroit after being drafted second overall in 1971, setting a rookie scoring record with the Red Wings.
Sports · born 1973Johnny Damonbaseball player, outfielderTwo-time World Series champion outfielder who spent a single, memorable season with the Tigers in 2010, notching his 2,500th career hit and a walk-off homer in Detroit.
Sports · 1931–2025Alex Delvecchioice hockey player, coach and general managerOne of only three players to spend 1,500-plus games with a single NHL franchise, a three-time Stanley Cup winner who later coached and ran the Red Wings' front office.
Sports · 1957–2015Darryl Dawkinsbasketball player, centerPowerful dunker famous for shattering backboards who joined the Pistons late in his career and earned a championship ring with the 1989 "Bad Boys."
Sports · 1912–1995Richard DegenerdiverDetroit-born diver who won an Olympic bronze in 1932 and gold in 1936, trained at the Detroit Athletic Club, and was honored in his hometown as one of the era's "City of Champions" stars.
Sports · born 1971Kris Draperice hockey forward and executiveFour-time Stanley Cup champion who spent 17 seasons with the Red Wings as part of the famed "Grind Line," then stayed on in the front office as assistant general manager.
Sports · born 1987Chris Douglas-Robertsbasketball playerDetroit-raised guard who starred at Cass Technical High School before leading the University of Memphis to the 2008 national championship game.
Sports · born 2000Sekou Doumbouyabasketball playerGuinean-French forward whom the Pistons drafted 15th overall in 2019, making him, at the time, the youngest active player in the NBA.The lexicon keeps growing. Every entry lists its sources at the bottom. Dates were checked against Wikidata and Wikipedia. The texts are our own. Famous people's places among the sights ↗