AUBURN HILLS -- If you ask Chauncey Billups or Richard Hamilton about their place in Pistons history, they both look first to the rafters.
"It's not anything we really talk about," Billups said. "But when the season ends and you get a chance to reflect and talk about our place, I mean, you look up and see Joe and Zeke (Hall-of-Famers Joe Dumars and Isiah Thomas, whose jerseys hang in The Palace). I feel like we are putting our place down, too, as second best to those guys."
In a separate interview a few minutes later, Hamilton addressed the same issue.
"When you are talking about all the great backcourts that have played here, you look up and see Isiah Thomas and Joe Dumars with both of their jerseys in the rafters; that's what matters. Me and Chaunce came here together to win as many championships as possible."
Billups and Hamilton will represent the Pistons at the All-Star Game on Sunday in Las Vegas, their second straight appearance. Dumars and Thomas went together as a tandem three straight years, from 1990-92.
Hamilton and Billups currently trail Dumars and Thomas in championships, as well, 2-1.
"But those guys are still young," said assistant Terry Porter, who formed a dynamic backcourt duo with Hall-of-Famer Clyde Drexler for six seasons in Portland. "Hopefully they are going to be playing together for a lot more years."
Billups and Hamilton are in their fifth season together. They have won 69 percent of their regular-season games (236-105). They are 49-34 in playoff games, with one title and two Eastern Conference titles. That alone, in Porter's view, makes them worthy of inclusion in any talk of great backcourts.
"They have to be in the talk because of the success they've had individually and as a team," Porter said. "They have to be in that discussion. You are talking about two All-Star appearances (apiece), an NBA Finals MVP (Billups) and a championship."
Flattering as it is, truth is, neither Hamilton nor Billups care much about historical comparisons. Their concern is being the best now, on a nightly basis.
"The first thing we talked about (when they came to the Pistons in the summer of 2002) was that we could be the best backcourt in the league," Billups said. "Before every game, before we go into the captains' circle, we say, 'Let's do what we do and keep proving ourselves.' We feel like we're the best on this court, and we try to prove it every single game."
Better together
The duo's on-court chemistry has been well-documented. What's less known is how little the two have in common in terms of personality and temperament.
Billups is solid, steadfast, a picture of poise and control. Hamilton is a rambunctious ball of energy, non-stop motion, sometimes contained, sometimes unrestrained.
"It's like I'm an older brother to him," Billups said. "When he gets out of control, and he gets wild, there's not a lot of guys who can say the things I say to him and have him look back humbly and say, 'You're right,' and vice-versa. It's a very balanced relationship."
It's not unusual to see the two hollering at each other on the court or during timeouts.
"Oh, yeah, we cuss each other out all the time," Hamilton said. "That's what people don't realize. When I am out there going too fast, he tells me something. And when he's out there jacking up 3-pointers, I will tell him to drive the ball. I cuss him out. That's the type of relationship we have.
"We know we both want the same thing, and that's to win."
It's gratifying to both that they are thought of as an All-Star tandem, especially after a couple of years where they seemed to cancel each other out in the process.
"Making it two years in a row shows that we just keep being good," Billups said. "They couldn't hold us down forever."
This time, both are allowing themselves to take some individual satisfaction, as well.
"This is special for me because I feel they picked me because of my talent and the things that I am doing, as opposed to being picked because of our team's success," Billups said.
Said Hamilton: "I think people are recognizing what I am doing out there on the floor, and that's a great feeling."
They both admit, though, that neither is as good alone as they are together.
"The reason any duo works is, one guy's weakness is the other guy's strength," Porter said. "Their ability to play off each other and balance each other out is a big part of their greatness."
