They call him Mr. Big Shot, and the name fits on numerous levels. Certainly, it fits his game. Chauncey Billups has made one clutch shot after another since signing with the Pistons as a free agent in the summer of 2002.
In his three seasons, the Pistons have won 50-plus games each year, won the Central Division title twice and, last year, with Billups earning the Finals' Most Valuable Player trophy, won the NBA championship.
"Chauncey has an unshakeable confidence and belief in his abilities on the basketball court," said Pistons president Joe Dumars, who was among the first to see greatness in Billups. "Plus his mental toughness -- that's what you are looking for in a point guard and a leader for your team."
Mr. Big Shot also fits Billups' style off the court. He may be the most well-liked player among the fraternity of NBA players. He has close friends on just about every team. And, when the All-Star Game was played in his hometown of Denver last February, Billups' parties were the No. 1 attraction for A-list celebrities.
"Chauncey's got more friends than anybody I know," jokes close friend and teammate Antonio McDyess. "He knows everybody, and everybody knows him."
But Billups is also a Big Shot to the many children he helps each year.
Last Christmas, when a young Detroit boy walked into a Meijer store, his eyes immediately lit up when he saw Billups waiting to greet him. When Billups told the boy he could buy himself a new winter coat and some toys, the boy was in awe.
He was one of 70 underprivileged kids that Billups, along with teammates Richard Hamilton and Derrick Coleman, adopted last Christmas; and he is one of thousands of kids Billups has helped out during his eight-year NBA career.
Billups, through his work in the Why Can't I Go? program, brings busloads of disadvantaged kids to Pistons games. It was a program he got involved with when he played in Minnesota, and he has brought those same kids all the way to Detroit for games.
In the summers, he conducts clinics and seminars in Denver's Park Hill neighborhood where he grew up.
Billups is also one of the leaders of the Pistons Read to Achieve program, taking the time during the season to visit schools and libraries to read to children.
"I just feel like that's what we're supposed to do, as athletes and as leaders in our communities," Billups said. "I know that I take a lot of pride in trying to give back, trying to let the people here get to know me and know what I am all about."
Billups played college ball at Colorado and was drafted by the Boston Celtics in 1997. He spent his first five seasons in the NBA with four teams -- Boston, Toronto, Denver and Minnesota -- before signing as a free agent with the Pistons in 2002.
He once wondered if he'd ever find a home in the NBA. Now feels like he has two.
"This is a place that, hopefully, is my last stop," said Billups, who is in the third year of a six-year contract. "Joe (Dumars) gave me an opportunity, and I just seized it and took advantage of it. And for this community to have embraced me like it has, I mean, it's great. I feel like I've got two homes, man, Detroit and Denver. I take a lot of pride in that."
Ben Wallace is thought to epitomize what the city of Detroit stands for, but Billups shares many of the same traits.
"I think I do embody what this city is about," he said. "I have worked hard for every single thing I got. That's why people appreciate me and how I play every night, and the way I am in the community. I take pride in being a model citizen, coming to work and working hard. Once you do that, people can recognize when you are genuine or not."
Last Christmas, the young Detroit boy walked back to Billups after buying his gifts and asked him one more question.
"I asked him if he would be my big brother forever."
Chris McCosky
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