DETROIT (AFP) — After years sputtering at rock bottom, the resurgent Detroit Pistons have motored back to the top of the NBA’s Eastern Conference.

As the season nears its halfway stage, the Pistons are leaving their rivals in the rearview mirror, powered by a fearless core of young talent and a fan base that has rediscovered its voice.

Two years ago, the Pistons finished bottom of the Eastern Conference with a league-worst 14-68 record, just a year after another dismal campaign where they also finished bottom, registering just 17 wins in a season where they also suffered the ignominy of a record 28-game losing streak.

But those lean years are rapidly becoming a distant memory, replaced by belief, momentum and the promise of a new winning era.

“During that 28-game losing streak, the mood was pretty grim, it was pretty dismal,” Omari Sankofa, a journalist who covers the Pistons for the Detroit Free Press, told AFP.

“It was kind of like, you’re just caught in this downward spiral.”

The mood today couldn’t be more different.

“It’s a complete 180 from, you know, these guys essentially are embarrassing to you guys and are making us proud,” adds Sankofa, a Detroit native who believes the Pistons personify the city’s blue-collar roots.

From the wilderness years of a few seasons ago, the Pistons’ modern Little Caesars Arena, which opened in 2017, now throbs with energy in the city’s vibrant Midtown neighborhood, a symbol of the gentrification under way in the metropolis.

“Great feeling this year,” said Damien Weekes, a 36-year-old Pistons fan accompanying his 15-year-old nephew to a recent game.

“The city’s being rejuvenated, we’re getting a soldout arena. This stadium used to be empty, and they were selling tickets for $5.”

“It’s very important for young fans. We lost an entire generation — they are fans of OKC (Oklahoma City Thunder) or Boston (Celtics).”

At the heart of the Detroit resurgence is a core of young players, built around the 2021 No. 1 NBA draft pick Cade Cunningham.

Successive poor seasons allowed them to select Jaden Ivey (5th, 2022), Ausar Thompson (5th, 2023), and Ron Holland (5th, 2024) high in the draft. A quick trade brought them the powerful Jalen Duren in 2022, shortly after his draft (13th).

The gifted point guard Cade Cunningham, still only 24, is averaging 25.7 points and 9.8 assists this season and is the driving force behind the camaraderie of a group who regard themselves as “nasty dogs.”

Along with his friend Duren, 22, the duo also spends their summers together, with family or traveling in Europe.

Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff said those kinds of bond between his players have been forged in the adversity of Detroit’s losing seasons.

“These guys have overcome a lot in the past years,” Bickerstaff said.

“And for us to just continue to keep growing, for them to stick together and not bail on one another, to me, that speaks volumes.”

“And that’s the reason why they’ve been able to grow and continue to take steps. Because when things got the hardest for this group, they didn’t separate from one another.”

“They rallied around one another and bought in more to each other, believed in each other that they could, and that’s why they find themselves in this position now.”

Cunningham, who this week was named as one of the starters for next month’s All-Star Game for the first time in his career, says Detroit are still adjusting to their new-found status as one of the league’s best teams.

“We’re just now turning the corner as far as just not being losers,” Cunningham said.

“We were losers for a little stint in the NBA. But we all have winning habits, winning mentalities. We’re just starting to get our feet wet as far as learning winning basketball.”

That winning mentality has included a 13-game unbeaten streak earlier this season, as well as a notable 104-103 win over the Boston Celtics, the 2024 champions.

“This is a historic franchise, one of the best franchises in the league,” Duren said.

“So, to be able to contribute to the turnaround and kind of get back on top where the Pistons are supposed to be — it’s been great. The city has been behind us the whole way, even through the downs and the lows.”