Category: Detroit Pistons Blog

The AP reports:

The Detroit Pistons have agreed to terms with former NBA players Dee Brown and Roy Rogers to become assistants on the staff of new head coach Lawrence Frank…

Brown, who played 12 years in the NBA with Boston, Toronto and Orlando, has coached the Springfield Armor of the NBA Development League. Rogers played 137 NBA games from 1996-2000 with Vancouver, Boston, Toronto and Denver. He worked for Frank as an assistant when Frank was coach of the New Jersey Nets.

The Detroit Pistons and Palace Sports & Entertainment announced today that Dennis Mannion has been appointed President, effective immediately.

Mannion, 52, will oversee all Detroit Pistons and Palace Sports & Entertainment business operations, including sales, marketing, finance and administration.  Detroit Pistons President of Basketball Operations Joe Dumars will continue to oversee all basketball operations.

Mannion brings a broad and unique perspective, having spent 29 seasons working in four major professional sports, including two years managing business operations for the NBA’s Denver Nuggets and the NHL’s Colorado Avalanche from 1998 to 1999. Mannion most recently served as President of the Los Angeles Dodgers where he worked from 2007 to 2010. He also previously worked for the Baltimore Ravens from 1999 to 2007, and for the Philadelphia Phillies from 1982 to 1997.

“Dennis is very well qualified and will bring a fresh perspective to the organization,” said Detroit Pistons and Palace Sports & Entertainment owner Tom Gores.  “He is an innovative guy and he shares our vision of creating the best possible experience for our fans.   He also shares our core values of hard work and commitment to the community.  Dennis knows what it takes to succeed at a high level and we are excited to have him on board.”

Throughout his career Mannion has led operations during 12 post-season runs, including two World Series, an NHL conference championship and a Super Bowl.

“Detroit is an incredible sports and entertainment town and I am honored by this opportunity,” said Mannion.  “I look forward to working with the Detroit Pistons and Palace Sports & Entertainment team, our corporate partners and the community to build on the legacy of this great organization.  We will do everything we can to provide the best, most exciting experience possible for everyone that comes out to see a game or a show.”

In Los Angeles, Mannion’s marketing initiatives and efforts to improve the game day experience helped the Dodgers lead Major League Baseball in paid attendance in 2009 for the first time since 1986.  He also created the Dodgers Sports Lab, an in-house production facility and staff that generates content for all of the team’s game broadcasts, motion graphics and video, online content and printed materials.

Mannion joined the Dodgers in 2007 following eight seasons with the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens where he was Senior Vice President of Business Ventures. In that role, Mannion oversaw all revenue streams, image, and brand-generating properties. He led and coordinated the development of more than 60 Ravens sub-brands, 12 season-long Ravens television and radio shows, and annual events such as Spring Football Festival, Ravens Kickoff Week, State of the Ravens, and the Ravens All Community Team.

Prior to joining the Ravens in 1999, Mannion spent three years as Senior Vice President at Ascent Sports, owner of the Denver Nuggets, the Colorado Avalanche and the Pepsi Center. Mannion managed all business operations for both teams and the arena.

Mannion spent 16 years with the Philadelphia Phillies from 1982-1997, serving as Vice President of Marketing and Sales for his last eight seasons. He was noted for enhancing the fan experience at Veterans Stadium during his tenure and was instrumental in securing and the staging the 1996 MLB All-Star Game in Philadelphia.

Mannion is a native of New York and graduated from the University of Massachusetts in 1981 with a bachelor’s degree in business and sports management.

Former NBA player and Michigan State star Jay Vincent was sentenced Friday to more than five years in prison and ordered to pay more than $110,000 to the Internal Revenue Service for his part in a fraud case involving thousands of people who paid to become certified home inspectors.

Prosecutors say Vincent and an associate defrauded 20,000 people out of more than $1 million by charging them to become inspectors through a business called Foreclosure Bank Inspection. No inspectors were hired, and the business had no contracts with banks, according to the government.

Vincent, 52, pleaded guilty to fraud and tax charges nearly a year ago. He apologized Friday in federal court in Grand Rapids, Mich., for his actions. U.S. District Judge Robert Jonker sentenced Vincent to 5 1/2 years on a mail fraud charge involving the victims and three years on a tax fraud charge. The sentences are to run concurrently. Vincent could be eligible for time off for good behavior that could slightly reduce his sentence.

— Reported by the Associated Press

University of Michigan “Fab Five” member and ex-Toronto Raptors player Jimmy King said he is working with authorities to resolve a child support claim after being arrested earlier this month. The state says he failed to pay $17,000.

“We are working with the attorney general’s office,” King told reporters Tuesday outside a hearing in Pontiac. “We are going to do everything in our power to make sure that this is taken care of. I’m just going to continue doing what I’m doing to support my family.”

King, 38, is scheduled to return to court Sept. 9 for a preliminary hearing.

— The Associated Press

Naomi R. Patton of the Detroit Free Press reports:

Fab Five star Jimmy King was in jail today after his arrest by agents from the Michigan Attorney General’s office, charged with failure to pay child support.

King, who turned 38 on Tuesday, was arraigned in Oakland County Circuit Court and charged with one count of failure to pay support, a felony carrying a maximum four-year prison term, according to John Sellek, state Attorney General spokesman. He said King owed $17,209 for one child, from 2008 to 2011.

Sellek said King was arrested without incident at 5 p.m. Tuesday at New St. Mark Baptist Church in Detroit, after agents saw a flyer about a basketball camp that advertised King’s involvement. Sellek added that agents had tried to reach King about outstanding child support by phone and by leaving notes at his home for six weeks.

A judge set a cash bond of $3,500 for King, but as of this evening, he remained in Oakland County Jail, according to its Web site.

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