August 4, 2025 | Articles Homepage News The Pistons The WNBA
How Tom Gores ignited the push to bring the WNBA back to Detroit: ‘Let’s go for it’
The occasion called for enthusiasm and Arn Tellem didn’t disappoint.
After WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert announced that Detroit – along with Cleveland and Philadelphia – is being granted a franchise in what would mark a triumphant return for one of the league’s most successful franchises, Tellem walked to the podium to add a little more emphasis to the announcement.
“The W is back in Detroit!” Tellem exclaimed as he raised his arms to shouts from the Detroit contingent in the New York audience.
“Let’s go!”
And with that it was official. The WNBA announced Monday that the Tom and Holly Gores-led ownership group will be granted a franchise that will begin play in 2029, which will be 20 years after the final season of the Detroit Shock. Fueled by the popularity of stars like Caitlin Clark and others, the WNBA is evolving into one of the leading sports brands in the United States.
Detroit is now officially part of that evolution.
“This is a huge win for Detroit and the WNBA,” Tom Gores said in a release. “Today marks the long-hoped-for return of the WNBA to a city with deep basketball roots and a championship tradition. Detroit played a key role in the league’s early growth, and we’re proud to reignite that legacy as the WNBA ascends to new heights. Our plans will bring new energy, investment and infrastructure to our city and the WNBA, and additional resources to our community.”
The ownership group comprises a diverse and accomplished group of equity investors from sports, business, entertainment, media and finance. Gores said he’s excited to work with this group to grow women’s basketball and inspire the community.
“We have brought together an impressive array of investors who reflect the strength and diversity of Detroit,” Gores said. “I’m excited about what we can accomplish together to advance women’s professional sports and inspire a new generation of fans. I’m grateful to our exceptional investor group, Commissioner Engelbert, and the WNBA for their trust in our vision and commitment to the people of Detroit.”
The WNBA now expands from 15 to 18 franchises.
“I’m thrilled to welcome Cleveland and Detroit back and to welcome Philadelphia officially to the WNBA,” Engelbert said. “These are proud cities with powerful sports legacies, each one rich in basketball tradition and fueled by passionate fan bases. What we know is they’re going to show up for the W, now they join the most elite women’s sports league in the world. This is far more than an expansion of our league. It’s an evolution of it.”
The announcement is more than an investment in basketball; it will ultimately be an investment in the city of Detroit. Plans include a comprehensive facilities strategy that will utilize a combination of new and current facilities to service the team, its players and the community. Plans include:
- The team will play its games at Little Caesars Arena, bringing another 22-plus sporting events to the city each year to help provide additional economic impact.
- A new dedicated WNBA practice facility and team headquarters for around-the-clock training and amenities for players and coaches. The facility will include state-of-the-art designated courts, locker room, workout facilities and office and lounge space.
- The development of a publicly accessible sports center that will support the formation and creation of a youth development academy. The vision is to build a community destination that will service the new franchise and include public-facing youth basketball courts, volleyball courts and multi-purpose fields for soccer, football and lacrosse, complete with spectator seating.
“The idea is to promote youth sports while breaking down barriers to access,” Tellem told an audience at the Mackinac Policy Conference in late May. “In Detroit, there is a lack of quality facilities for schools. The goal is to break down barriers to access, and to give every child in Detroit the opportunity to play and compete, no matter the zip code.”
Detroit rises to the top
After Engelbert announced a goal to expand the WNBA to 16 teams by 2028 last year, there was robust interest from markets throughout the country. Fueled by the league’s rapid growth and momentum, the decision was made to expand beyond the initial 16-team target.
According to Tellem, the journey began before that decision. The WNBA was part of the discussion years ago when he was first lured to the Pistons by Gores in 2015.
In those initial discussions, the focus was on exploring the eventual decision to return the franchise back to downtown Detroit after several decades in northern Oakland County. The Pistons began playing at Little Caesars Arena in 2019.
Then the focus was constructing the $90 million Henry Ford-Pistons Performance Center to house the franchise in the New Center neighborhood of Detroit. The building opened in 2018.
But Tellem said the WNBA was just on the backburner.
“(Tom) had a whole vision about we would win basketball games, but we had to look at ways to make the greatest impact we could in the community, using the Pistons as a platform, a community asset.
“We talked about the possibility of the WNBA down the road once we got going. When the WNBA announced their intent to look to expand, I went back to Tom, and he said: ‘Absolutely, let’s go for it.’”
The day was a huge win for Shock fans. From 1998 to 2009, the Shock won three titles, was in the top five in attendance for five straight seasons and No. 1 in attendance for three straight seasons and set a single-game attendance record of 22,076 fans at Game 3 of the 2003 WNBA Finals.
The franchise moved to Tulsa in 2010, but the memories still remain.
One of the stars of those teams, Swin Cash, is proud of the legacy, but is excited for the future.
“This investment group is coming in saying: “Not only are we invested in women for the WNBA, we’re invested in the community. We’re invested in the youth,” Cash said while sitting alongside Tellem at the MPC. “That’s what the WNBA was built on, that collaborative mindset. That’s why I’m so happy … The vision isn’t just about investment in women.
“This is good business. I didn’t say just a charity. It’s good business.”