It’s not often, if at all, that one can claim success in three distinct areas—professional sports, business and politics. Yet, Dave Bing did just that when he was elected the 62nd Mayor of the City of Detroit in May 2009 as part of a special election. A native of Washington, D.C., Bing is a graduate of Syracuse University where he earned his Bachelor of Arts in Economics, and was later bestowed an honorary Doctorate of Laws in 2006. He was also a standout basketball player and an All American in both high school and college.
Bing came to Detroit in 1966 when he was drafted by the Detroit Pistons as their No. 1 pick, and the second overall pick in the NBA draft that year. Unlike many first-year players, Bing’s transition to the NBA was an easy one. His 1,601 points earned him Rookie of the Year and further propelled him into NBA stardom.
Throughout his 12 seasons in the NBA, Bing averaged 20.3 points and 6 assists per game, appeared in seven All-Star Games and was named to the All-NBA First Team in 1968 and 1969. After spending the majority of his career with the Pistons, Bing did go on to play two years with the Washington Bullets and one year with the Boston Celtics. Bing hung up his sneakers at the conclusion of the 1977-78 season. He was inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame in 1990, as well as the the Michigan Hall of Fame in 1984.
Bing turned his winning strategies from the basketball court to the boardroom as the founder of an automotive supply corporation, The Bing Group in 1980, where he served as President and Chairman until April 2009. Bing realized yet another level of success in this role, as The Bing Group has been recognized around the country as a premier supplier of quality and uncompromised products and service. Within a decade, The Bing Group was recognized as one of the nation’s top Minority-Owned Companies by Black Enterprise. In the summer of 1999, he partnered with Ford Motor Co. to build the Detroit Manufacturing Training Center, a nonprofit facility to help prepare unemployed and under-employed workers to obtain jobs in the auto supply industry.
Answering yet another call to serve, Bing decided to run for Mayor of Detroit to help rebuild a city that he has loved and been a part of for more than 40 years. Proving that the basics of good performance, integrity and business can be applied to any area or industry, Bing has brought a renewed sense of trust and hope to the City of Detroit.
Poised to make the tough decisions, he has already begun to lay the groundwork for solid city government by instituting the toughest ethics ordinance in the city’s history. He and his team of professionals are also carefully analyzing ways to restructure operations to improve efficiency, and to tackle the city’s systemic issues.
Bing is married to Yvette Bing, with whom he has shared more than 23 years. He is also the proud father of three, and grandfather of four. He still enjoys tennis and golf, as much as his now demanding schedule will allow.