<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">In 1966, the Pistons coveted University of Michigan star Cazzie Russell. But the Knicks, with the first pick in the draft, selected Russell. That left a less-heralded guard from Syracuse, Dave Bing, for Detroit with the second pick. Sometimes the fates can be cruel. This time, the fates smiled on the Pistons. By any measure, Bing's pro career surpassed Russell's and gave the Pistons their first African-American superstar. Bing was a sleek, soft-spoken player -- a characterization that remains accurate today. He enjoys success as a self-made businessman who established and built a multimillion dollar steel business in Detroit. In nine seasons with Detroit (and three more with Washington and Boston), Bing scored 18,327 points and earned a spot on the NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team. He was the NBA's rookie of the year in 1966-67 and went on to play in seven All-Star games. In his second season, he led the NBA in scoring (27.1) ahead of Elgin Baylor and Wilt Chamberlain, and did all those things with little fuss or bother. It was the man's style to be effective, efficient and unassuming. And he accomplished it after suffering an injury to an eye that threatened to cut short his career. In 1990, Bing was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.</div> Source
