Detroit Investor Group Featuring Grant Hill And Chris Webber Look To Bring WNBA Team To The D

The group is led by Detroit Pistons owner Tom Gores.

The WNBA is expanding, and among the groups vying for a spot is a Detroit collective group led by Detroit Pistons owner Tom Gores that features Chris Webber and Grant Hill, both of whom played in Detroit during their Hall of Fame careers.

“This is an exciting opportunity to welcome the WNBA back to Detroit and bring additional investment and economic activity into the city,” Gores said in a written statement.

“For the WNBA this is home, and our bid represents an unprecedented opportunity for the league to come full circle and effect a long-hoped-for Detroit homecoming. No city is more prepared to embrace the team as a community asset that drives unity and common ground.”

On behalf of an exceptional ownership group, an expansive coalition of civic and business leaders and an excited fan base that embraced the WNBA for many years, @DetroitPistons Owner Tom Gores submitted on Thursday a formal bid to bring the league back to Detroit. pic.twitter.com/y1klJRmQ0t

— Pistons PR (@Pistons_PR) January 31, 2025

Others involved in the investment group include principal owner and Chair of the Detroit Lions, Sheila Ford Hamp and her husband, Steve, chairman of the Michigan Education Excellence Foundation and New Economy Initiative; CEO and chair of the General Motors Company, Mary Barra and her husband, Tony; Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff and his wife, Christen; Arn and Nancy Tellem.

“Michiganders are fired up,” Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitner said in a statement promising her administration’s support. “Our passion for our teams and players is unmatched, our commitment to our communities remains unwavering, and our vision for women’s sports is crystal clear.”

If awarded a franchise, the team will play its games at Little Caesars Arena.

Detroit was home to the Detroit Shock from 1998 to 2009. The team won three championships before relocating to Tulsa. The Tulsa Shock then relocated to Texas in 2016 and now play in Arlington as the Dallas Wings.