Richard Hamilton has a new title in Detroit -- richest Piston ever.

Hamilton, who agreed last month to a seven-year contract, ended up with a team-record deal worth $63 million. He will make $6.4 million this season, with 12 percent annual increases after that.

Hamilton, 25, was a restricted free agent.

"There was definitely interest in other teams, but I wanted to be here and make the situation a lot easier," Hamilton said Tuesday.

In his first season with the Pistons, Hamilton was the leading scorer, averaging 19.7 points a game. He helped the team win the Central Division title and reach the Eastern Conference finals.

"Rip came here last year and felt like he had a lot to prove," said Joe Dumars, the Pistons' president of basketball operations. "We traded away a guy who had been established here for a while" -- Jerry Stackhouse -- "and there were a lot of questions surrounding Rip when he came here. And I think I can safely say he answered all of those questions that everyone had about him.