Detroit Pistons, Henry Ford Health System announce new performance center in Detroit

DETROIT – The Detroit Pistons and Henry Ford Health System announced a new performance center that will be located in Detroit.

The announcement was made Friday afternoon inside the Gilmour Center at Henry Ford Health System headquarters.

The center will house a new training facility and corporate headquarters for the Pistons and includes a comprehensive sports medicine, treatment and rehabilitation facility managed by the health system.

The facility is planed to be built about two miles north of the new Little Caesars Arena, where the Pistons will begin playing games next season.

"This is a groundbreaking alliance between two institutions committed to making a difference in Detroit," said Pistons owner Tom Gores. " We are very excited to work with Henry Ford Health System on this innovative project. It's a long term partnership that establishes another building block in the revitalization and rebuilding of our city. It's also an important investment in our team, providing Stan and our players with the best training and development resources available anywhere."

From the news release

Basketball Benefits

The facility will be a trendsetter in the NBA with basketball practice areas directly connected to a newly developed, multi-faceted, and comprehensive sports medicine center. The performance center will house an estimated 100,000 square feet of the most-up-to-date basketball training equipment while a short walk will allow seamless accessibility for players and team medical practitioners providing injury diagnosis and rehabilitative treatment.

“Internal development is one of the most important aspects of building a winning team, while health, injury prevention and rehabilitation are crucial to team performance,” said Van Gundy.  “The new performance center will provide our players the most advanced, cutting edge technology available in an environment that will condition and train them to the best of their ability.”

Bringing so many resources together in one place is expected to revolutionize the integration of sports science and research into the day-to-day schedule of each player. Technology, analytics and innovation will drive both training and recovery processes and equipment in the new building.   Amenities are expected to include:

• Innovative player locker room and lounge
• Full-service kitchen/dining facilities and personal chef
• Spacious weight room facility with state-of-the art equipment
• Film and study meeting rooms
• Advanced training room capabilities with full hydro and cryogenic treatment systems
• Green space and courtyard locations for outside access and views of city
• Production studio and media/interview rooms
• Private and public parking structure to be used by both Detroit Pistons and Henry Ford personnel
• Dedicated Henry Ford Health System Sports Medicine Building – connected to performance center

Community Access

Bringing business and basketball together in one building presents exciting opportunities for the community and the new performance center will be designed in a way that allows for community access.  The facility will serve as a hub for fitness, health and nutrition programming through the Detroit Pistons Fit and annual NBA Fit Week programming.   Youth basketball clinics and Pistons Academy basketball programs will be hosted throughout the year.  Additionally, a spacious lobby and public access locations will be available for team hosted private events, receptions and community networking activities.

Community members will continue to have access to Henry Ford’s true “team medicine” approach at the new sports medicine facility. Henry Ford employs a team comprised of traditional sports medicine experts including orthopedic surgeons, athletic trainers, and nutritionists, but, also a broad range of other specialists with additional training in sports medicine, including cardiology and pulmonary care, ophthalmology and complex spinal care, pain management and sleep medicine.  Patients can talk to a nurse during extended hours and can arrange an appointment with a specialist within 24 business hours for sports related injuries. Additionally, patients have access to Henry Ford’s unique Herrick-Davis Motion Analysis Laboratory, which uses advanced 3D technology and high speed x-ray to measure joint motion with extremely high accuracy. The technology is combined with full biomechanical analysis, which documents an athlete’s movement patterns to track both problems and progress.

Economic Impact

The new Henry Ford - Detroit Pistons Performance Center will create additional construction-related jobs in the short-term and provide future economic impact for Detroit by way of city income tax and property tax revenues generated by the organization’s relocation of business and basketball operations to the city.

The new performance center is part of Henry Ford’s ongoing commitment to facilitating economic development in the New Center and greater Midtown areas. In addition to a much-anticipated groundbreaking on its own new cancer facility across from Henry Ford Hospital, Henry Ford recently sold an unused parcel of land for the expansion of the Motown Museum, and, a parking lot to make way for the new retail and housing development adjacent to the Fisher Building on W. Grand Boulevard. Additionally, Henry Ford has long supported the effort to expand the M-1 rail project, among other initiatives.