Auburn Hills, MI (Best E Casino) - Flip Saunders will not return as head coach of the Detroit Pistons next season, the club announced Tuesday.

"Decisions like this are difficult to make," said Pistons president of basketball operations Joe Dumars. "However, at this time, I feel it is necessary to make a change. I thank Flip for his hard work and dedication, but it is time for a new voice to lead our team."

Despite a 176-70 mark in his first three seasons in Detroit, Saunders finds himself unemployed after a third consecutive Eastern Conference finals exit in the playoffs. He had one year left on the four-year deal he signed in 2005.

The former Timberwolves coach failed to duplicate the success of his predecessor, Larry Brown, who led the Pistons to the NBA Finals twice in his two seasons, winning the 2004 title over the Lakers in five games.

"We wanted new leadership, we wanted a new voice, and we wanted a new direction from that particular seat," Dumars said at an afternoon press conference.

The Pistons went 59-23 this season, good for the second-best record in the NBA, and advanced to the conference finals for the sixth straight season. They were eliminated by the Boston Celtics in six games, however.

Saunders inherited the defending Eastern Conference champs when he was hired by Detroit in July 2005, and the Pistons didn't miss a beat under their new coach in his first season. The Pistons rolled to a 24-3 start, and won a franchise-record 64 games in the regular season, but were bounced in the conference finals by eventual champ Miami.

The 2006-07 season was a bit of a step back, as the Pistons finished 53-29. They again rolled to the conference finals, and won the first two games against the Cavaliers. Cleveland came back to win the next four straight, however.

"Make no mistake we won a lot of regular season games ... but there's a lot more to decision like this," said Dumars.

Saunders has a career coaching mark of 587-396 in 11 full seasons and parts of two others. He first took over in Minnesota during the 1995-96 season and led the Timberwolves to their first winning season and playoff wins in franchise history two years later. The Wolves advanced to the Western Conference finals in 2004, but Saunders was fired midway through the 2004-05 season after the club struggled to a 25-26 start.