Discarded engine part

A once-proud organization is in the midst of rebuilding, having to decide what to do with aging veterans such as Richard Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince while exhibiting patience with its younger core. Tonight at the Palace of Auburn Hills, a member of the Pistons’ glorious recent past will return, sporting a bushy, woolen beard and specks of gray in his thick hair.

Nearly six years ago, Pistons president Joe Dumars acquired Rasheed Wallace from the Atlanta Hawks in a two-week process that began with Wallace being traded from Portland to Atlanta, where he played one game. Once he was shipped to Detroit, he shattered the status quo in the Eastern Conference.

For 5 1/2 seasons, Wallace dived into the culture of working-class Detroit, becoming a fixture in the community and quickly bonding with the fans, who felt represented by his cantankerous attitude and appreciative that his versatile floor game made the Pistons perennial championship contenders.

Wallace had developed a reputation in Portland, labeled by some as a selfish, bratty star with a bad attitude. In Detroit, he refined his image, and when the Pistons turned into a dominant defensive team and a gifted offensive one, Wallace was credited for helping them reach elite status.

His return tonight in a Celtics uniform is bittersweet. His final years in Detroit were stained by the same boorish attitude that plagued him in Portland, but he helped the Pistons win a championship in 2003-04. They made it back to the Finals the next season, and reached the Eastern Conference finals the next three years.

While Wallace may not be basketball royalty in Detroit, he does deserve accolades for his impact on the franchise’s resurrection.

“It was cool,’’ he said. “I didn’t even know I was going to end up in Detroit. But once I did, guys panned out to be cool on the defensive mind-set and we were just riding that wave, riding that high, and took it home.’’

No one on the Pistons quite knew what to expect with Wallace’s arrival. He was known as a hot-headed player with a propensity for technical fouls, and he was joining a team that had several All-Star-caliber players with their own distinct personalities.