Pistons, current and former, grieve Saunders' death

Flip Saunders coached the Detroit Pistons to three consecutive Eastern Conference finals berths in his three years as head coach from 2005-08.

He also left a lasting impression on many of the players who previously helped lead the Pistons to the 2004 NBA championship.

The team expressed its condolences this afternoon following the news that Saunders passed away after a battle with Hodgkin's Lymphoma at age 60.

"It is with tremendous sorrow that the Detroit Pistons organization acknowledges the passing of Flip Saunders," the team said in a statement. "He will be remembered by Pistons fans as one of the franchise's most successful head coaches - leading the club to three consecutive Eastern Conference Finals appearances and a franchise-record 64 wins in 2005-06. Flip was a great ambassador for the Metro Detroit community and had a positive influence on those who had the opportunity to spend time with him. We send our heartfelt condolences to his wife, Debbie, his children Ryan, Mindy, Rachel, Kimberly and all his friends throughout the extended Detroit Pistons and NBA family."

Saunders finished his 3-year tenure in Detroit with a 176-70 record. The Pistons fired him following a third consecutive elimination in the East finals, in 2008 to the Boston Celtics, who went on to win the NBA title that year.

Saunders was 654-594 (.524 winning percentage) as an NBA head coach, including 47-51 in the postseason (30-21 with the Pistons).

ESPN analyst Chauncey Billups spoke on SportsCenter today about how Saunders revitalized his career in Minnesota (before s

Many current and former players, some of which played for Saunders in Detroit, took to Twitter to express their sorrows.

Michigan State basketball coach Tom Izzo also issued a statement this afternoon:

Sports figures we've lost in 2015: