Last Updated on January 6, 2026 by Mat Diekhake
League Search Page > NBA > Detroit Pistons > Roster & Statistics
Here is the 1977–78 Detroit Pistons roster and regular season player statistics:
1977–78 Detroit Pistons Roster
| No. | Player | Pos | Height | Weight | DOB | Age | College |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | Bob Lanier | C | 6’11” | 250 | 9/10/1948 | 29 | St. Bonaventure |
| 23 | M.L. Carr | SF | 6’6″ | 205 | 1/9/1951 | 27 | Guilford |
| 42 | Chris Ford | SG | 6’5″ | 190 | 1/11/1949 | 29 | Villanova |
| 25 | Howard Porter | SF | 6’8″ | 220 | 8/31/1948 | 29 | Villanova |
| 21 | Kevin Porter | PG | 6’0″ | 170 | 4/17/1950 | 27 | St. Francis (PA) |
| 24 | Eric Money | PG | 6’0″ | 170 | 2/6/1955 | 22 | Arizona |
| 22 | Ralph Simpson | SG | 6’5″ | 200 | 8/10/1949 | 28 | Michigan State |
| 34 | Leon Douglas | C | 6’10” | 230 | 8/26/1954 | 23 | Alabama |
| 8 | Marvin Barnes | PF | 6’8″ | 210 | 7/27/1952 | 25 | Providence |
| 44 | Al Eberhard | SF | 6’6″ | 225 | 5/10/1952 | 25 | Missouri |
| 12 | Phil Sellers | SF | 6’4″ | 215 | 11/20/1953 | 24 | Rutgers |
| 20 | Roger Brown | C | 6’11” | 225 | 2/23/1950 | 27 | Kansas |
| 31 | George Trapp | PF | 6’8″ | 210 | 7/2/1948 | 29 | Long Beach State |
| 15 | Cornelius Cash | PF | 6’8″ | 220 | 8/29/1952 | 25 | Bowling Green |
1977–78 Regular Season Per Game
| PN | POS | AGE | G | GS | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | FGA | FGM | FG% | 3PA | 3PM | 3P% | FTA | FTM | FT% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bob Lanier | C | 29 | 63 | 36.7 | 24.5 | 11.3 | 3.4 | 1.3 | 1.5 | 3.6 | 18.4 | 9.9 | .537 | 6.1 | 4.7 | .772 | ||||
| Eric Money | PG | 22 | 76 | 33.6 | 18.6 | 2.8 | 4.7 | 1.6 | 0.2 | 4.2 | 15.8 | 7.9 | .500 | 3.9 | 2.8 | .718 | ||||
| John Shumate | PF | 25 | 62 | 35.0 | 15.5 | 8.9 | 2.0 | 1.2 | 0.7 | 3.0 | 10.0 | 5.1 | .508 | 6.6 | 5.3 | .797 | ||||
| M.L. Carr | SF | 27 | 79 | 32.4 | 12.4 | 7.1 | 2.3 | 1.9 | 0.3 | 2.7 | 10.8 | 4.9 | .455 | 3.4 | 2.5 | .738 | ||||
| Jim Price | PG | 28 | 34 | 24.7 | 11.5 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 1.3 | 0.1 | 2.2 | 10.7 | 4.5 | .421 | 3.0 | 2.5 | .816 | ||||
| Leon Douglas | C | 23 | 79 | 25.2 | 10.9 | 7.4 | 1.4 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 2.5 | 8.4 | 4.1 | .481 | 4.4 | 2.8 | .641 | ||||
| Ralph Simpson | SG | 28 | 32 | 23.1 | 10.6 | 2.6 | 2.7 | 1.0 | 0.1 | 2.4 | 10.8 | 4.5 | .413 | 2.0 | 1.7 | .844 | ||||
| Chris Ford | SG | 29 | 82 | 31.5 | 10.5 | 3.3 | 4.6 | 2.0 | 0.2 | 2.8 | 9.5 | 4.6 | .481 | 1.9 | 1.4 | .734 | ||||
| Marvin Barnes | PF | 25 | 12 | 22.4 | 10.0 | 7.6 | 1.6 | 0.6 | 0.9 | 2.4 | 9.8 | 4.4 | .449 | 2.4 | 1.2 | .483 | ||||
| Gus Gerard | SF | 24 | 47 | 17.1 | 7.9 | 3.1 | 0.9 | 0.7 | 0.5 | 1.1 | 7.6 | 3.3 | .434 | 2.0 | 1.4 | .688 | ||||
| Al Skinner | SG | 25 | 69 | 18.5 | 7.0 | 2.5 | 1.6 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 1.9 | 5.6 | 2.6 | .468 | 2.3 | 1.8 | .774 | ||||
| Jim Bostic | PF | 25 | 4 | 12.0 | 6.5 | 4.0 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.8 | 5.5 | 3.0 | .545 | 1.3 | 0.5 | .400 | ||||
| Willie Norwood | SF | 30 | 16 | 16.3 | 5.5 | 3.4 | 0.9 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 1.1 | 5.1 | 2.1 | .415 | 1.8 | 1.3 | .690 | ||||
| Al Eberhard | SF | 25 | 37 | 15.6 | 4.9 | 2.8 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.6 | 4.3 | 1.9 | .444 | 1.6 | 1.1 | .672 | ||||
| Kevin Porter | PG | 27 | 8 | 15.9 | 4.6 | 1.9 | 4.5 | 0.6 | 0.0 | 1.5 | 3.9 | 1.8 | .452 | 1.6 | 1.1 | .692 | ||||
| Howard Porter | SF | 29 | 8 | 13.4 | 4.5 | 2.1 | 0.3 | 0.4 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 5.4 | 2.0 | .372 | 0.9 | 0.5 | .571 | ||||
| Ben Poquette | PF | 22 | 52 | 12.0 | 4.5 | 2.8 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 0.8 | 4.3 | 1.8 | .422 | 1.2 | 0.8 | .700 | ||||
| Wayman Britt | SG | 25 | 7 | 2.3 | 1.3 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 1.4 | 0.4 | .300 | 0.6 | 0.4 | .750 | ||||
| Team Totals | 82 | 242.1 | 109.0 | 46.7 | 22.4 | 10.6 | 4.0 | 22.7 | 90.5 | 43.3 | .478 | 30.4 | 22.3 | .736** |
1977–78 Playoff Per Game
| PLAYER | POS | AGE | GP | GS | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | FGA | FGM | FG% | 3PA | 3PM | 3P% | FTA | FTM | FT% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bob Lanier | C | 29 | 63 | 2311 | 1542 | 715 | 216 | 82 | 93 | 225 | 1159 | 622 | .537 | 386 | 298 | .772 | ||||
| Eric Money | PG | 22 | 76 | 2557 | 1414 | 209 | 356 | 123 | 12 | 322 | 1200 | 600 | .500 | 298 | 214 | .718 | ||||
| M.L. Carr | SF | 27 | 79 | 2556 | 980 | 557 | 185 | 147 | 27 | 210 | 857 | 390 | .455 | 271 | 200 | .738 | ||||
| John Shumate | PF | 25 | 62 | 2170 | 958 | 554 | 122 | 76 | 43 | 186 | 622 | 316 | .508 | 409 | 326 | .797 | ||||
| Leon Douglas | C | 23 | 79 | 1993 | 863 | 582 | 112 | 57 | 48 | 197 | 667 | 321 | .481 | 345 | 221 | .641 | ||||
| Chris Ford | SG | 29 | 82 | 2582 | 861 | 268 | 381 | 166 | 17 | 232 | 777 | 374 | .481 | 154 | 113 | .734 | ||||
| Al Skinner | SG | 25 | 69 | 1274 | 485 | 172 | 113 | 52 | 15 | 132 | 387 | 181 | .468 | 159 | 123 | .774 | ||||
| Jim Price | PG | 28 | 34 | 839 | 390 | 101 | 102 | 45 | 5 | 74 | 363 | 153 | .421 | 103 | 84 | .816 | ||||
| Gus Gerard | SF | 24 | 47 | 805 | 372 | 146 | 44 | 34 | 22 | 54 | 355 | 154 | .434 | 93 | 64 | .688 | ||||
| Ralph Simpson | SG | 28 | 32 | 739 | 340 | 82 | 87 | 32 | 3 | 78 | 346 | 143 | .413 | 64 | 54 | .844 | ||||
| Ben Poquette | PF | 22 | 52 | 626 | 232 | 145 | 20 | 10 | 22 | 40 | 225 | 95 | .422 | 60 | 42 | .700 | ||||
| Al Eberhard | SF | 25 | 37 | 576 | 183 | 102 | 26 | 13 | 4 | 23 | 160 | 71 | .444 | 61 | 41 | .672 | ||||
| Marvin Barnes | PF | 25 | 12 | 269 | 120 | 91 | 19 | 7 | 11 | 29 | 118 | 53 | .449 | 29 | 14 | .483 | ||||
| Willie Norwood | SF | 30 | 16 | 260 | 88 | 54 | 14 | 13 | 3 | 17 | 82 | 34 | .415 | 29 | 20 | .690 | ||||
| Kevin Porter | PG | 27 | 8 | 127 | 37 | 15 | 36 | 5 | 0 | 12 | 31 | 14 | .452 | 13 | 9 | .692 | ||||
| Howard Porter | SF | 29 | 8 | 107 | 36 | 17 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 43 | 16 | .372 | 7 | 4 | .571 | ||||
| Jim Bostic | PF | 25 | 4 | 48 | 26 | 16 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 22 | 12 | .545 | 5 | 2 | .400 | ||||
| Wayman Britt | SG | 25 | 7 | 16 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 3 | .300 | 4 | 3 | .750 | ||||
| Team Totals | 82 | 19855 | 8936 | 3830 | 1840 | 866 | 330 | 1840 | 7424 | 3552 | .478 | 2490 | 1832 | .736** |
Team Impact Spotlight
| Player Name | Role Tier | MPG | Usage Tier | PPG | RPG | APG | STK | Impact Index* | Notes | Awards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bob Lanier | Alpha – Primary Post Anchor | 36.7 | High | 24.5 | 11.3 | 3.4 | 2.8 | 20.0 | Despite injuries limiting him to 63 games, Lanier remained the team’s interior backbone — high-efficiency scoring, elite rebounding and rim presence. His inside scoring and physical dominance kept Detroit competitive game-to-game. | All‑Star (AS), 10th in MVP voting (MVP‑10) |
| Eric Money | Alpha – Primary Ball‑Handler & Scorer | 33.6 | High | 18.6 | 2.8 | 4.7 | 1.8 | 13.45 | As the leading guard, Money carried heavy playmaking and scoring responsibilities. His 4.7 assists and decent defense (steals + blocks) reflect a dual‑threat backcourt role. | — |
| M.L. Carr | Beta – Two‑Way Wing / Secondary Scorer‑Defender | 32.4 | Mid‑High | 12.4 | 7.1 | 2.3 | 2.5 | 12.15 | Provided steady two‑way value: contributing rebounding, facilitating, and bringing active defense with strong steal + block rates. On a roster thin at wing positions, his versatility was valuable. | NBA All‑Defensive Second Team (DEF2) |
| John Shumate | Beta – Front‑Court Scorer / Complementary Big | 35.0 | Mid | 15.5 | 8.9 | 2.0 | 1.9 | 14.15 | As a PF playing starter-level minutes, Shumate offered a strong second scoring/rebounding front‑court option behind Lanier — valuable in a physical, inside‑oriented roster. His inside touch added needed balance to perimeter-heavy guards. | — |
| Chris Ford | Beta – Starter Guard / Perimeter Role Player | 31.5 | Mid | 10.5 | 3.3 | 4.6 | 2.2 | 10.30 | As a regular rotation guard, Ford filled out the backcourt with playmaking and reliable floor‑spacing. His defensive activity (steals + blocks) added glue to the perimeter defense. | — |
| Leon Douglas | Gamma – Rotation Big / Rebounding Presence | 25.2 | Low‑Mid | 10.9 | 7.4 | 1.4 | 1.3 | 10.50 | As a backup/rotation center, Douglas provided front‑court depth with solid rebounds and modest scoring. In a bruising era, having a reliable reserve big helped absorb wear over 82 games. | — |
| Jim Price | Gamma – Backup Guard / Spot Minutes Contributor | 24.7 | Low | 11.5 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 1.4 | 9.45 | In his limited minutes, Price offered scoring and ball‑handling relief — useful for giving starters rest or injecting energy when needed. | — |
| Ralph Simpson | Gamma – Spot Wing / Bench Scorer | 23.1 | Low | 10.6 | 2.6 | 2.7 | 1.0 | 8.95 | Functioned as a bench wing option, providing perimeter scoring and supporting depth. In a thin roster, such bench scoring was a minor but welcome boost. | — |
| Marvin Barnes | Gamma – Limited Role PF | 22.4 | Low | 10.0 | 7.6 | 1.6 | 1.5 | 10.35 | Though he played only 12 games, Barnes showed front‑court scoring and rebounding capability — a potential depth piece that unfortunately saw little opportunity. | — |
| Al Skinner | Gamma – Deep Bench / Role–Minute Guard | 18.5 | Low | 7.0 | 2.5 | 1.6 | 1.0 | 5.05 | Low minutes but offered guard depth and occasional offense — limited impact but provided roster flexibility. | — |
| Gus Gerard | Delta – Fringe Rotation Wing | 17.1 | Low | 7.9 | 3.1 | 0.9 | 1.2 | 6.55 | Saw spot minutes as wing depth — contributed modestly but not central to team performance. | — |
| Willie Norwood | Delta – Deep Reserve Wing | 16.3 | Very Low | 5.5 | 3.4 | 0.9 | 1.0 | 5.40 | Minimal role; provided occasional depth, especially to fill spot minutes in front‑court or wing. | — |
| Kevin Porter (2nd stint) | Delta – Brief Guard Role | 15.9 | Very Low | 4.6 | 1.9 | 4.5 | 0.6 | 5.30 | Very limited sample — had past pedigree, but this brief appearance provided little impact due to small sample size and likely limited role. | — |
| Al Eberhard | Delta – Fringe Wing / End‑of‑Bench | 15.6 | Very Low | 4.9 | 2.8 | 0.7 | 0.5 | 4.45 | Spot minutes, little influence — mostly used for depth in case of injuries or match‑ups. | — |
| Howard Porter | Delta – Rare Rotation Wing | 13.4 | Very Low | 4.5 | 2.1 | 0.3 | 1.0 | 4.95 | Minimal usage and impact; marginal contributor. | — |
| Ben Poquette | Delta – Deep Front‑Court Reserve | 12.0 | Very Low | 4.5 | 2.8 | 0.4 | 0.6 | 4.15 | Provided occasional rebound support and physicality, but overall a deep‑bench role. | — |
| Jim Bostic | Delta – Bottom‑of‑Rotation Big | 12.0 | Very Low | 6.5 | 4.0 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 5.15 | In limited games, offered a small interior presence — depth insurance more than a core contributor. | — |
| Wayman Britt | Delta – Marginal Guard / End‑of‑Bench | 2.3 | Very Low | 1.3 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 1.65 | Played extremely limited minutes; negligible impact. | — |