NBA Coach of the Year Award
The Pistons made another major—perhaps, riskier—coaching change, firing head coach Rick Carlisle, who had led the Pistons to consecutive Central Division titles, 100 regular season wins, and had received the NBA Coach of the Year Award in 2002. In his place, Dumars hired legendary coach Larry Brown, who had most recently led the Philadelphia 76ers to the NBA Finals in 2001 against the Lakers.