Sports
Mike Woodson
born 1958 · basketball coach, former player
Longtime NBA assistant who spent one season on Larry Brown's Pistons bench in 2003–04 and won an NBA championship with Detroit before going on to a long head-coaching career elsewhere.
- Born
Indianapolis, Indiana
age 68- Birth name
- Michael Dean Woodson
- Detroit years
- 2003–2004
- Field
- Sports
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
After playing eleven NBA seasons, Woodson built a long career as an assistant coach, following mentor Larry Brown from Philadelphia to Detroit for the 2003–04 season. That Pistons team, built around defense and led by Chauncey Billups, Ben Wallace and Richard Hamilton, upset the favored Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Finals, giving Woodson his only NBA championship ring from his single season on the Detroit bench. Brown later called him one of the most loyal, respected coaches he ever worked with. Woodson left after that title season to become head coach of the Atlanta Hawks, beginning a long head-coaching career built in part on what he learned in Detroit.
Highlights
- Assistant coach for the Detroit Pistons, 2003–04 season
- Won the 2004 NBA championship with Detroit under head coach Larry Brown
- Went on to head-coaching jobs with the Atlanta Hawks, New York Knicks and Indiana Hoosiers
- His only NBA title came in his single season in Detroit
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 1
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Worked here · 2003–2004
The Palace of Auburn Hills
Demolished · 1988–2020
The Pistons' home arena during his championship season as an assistant coach; demolished in 2020.