The attendant outside of the suites at Little Caesars Arena was determined to guess who Tom Hur was.
After all, a steady stream of people were approaching the 33-year-old to shake his hand and ask for pictures before Game 2 of the Detroit Pistons' first round of the playoffs. She was sure he was someone famous.
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"I'm thinking a show or something," she guessed, figuring him for a Hollywood star.
That may be true in Hur's hometown of Seoul, South Korea, where Hur works a 10-6 job at a bank. But in Detroit, Hur is famous just for loving Detroit.
Hur, now known to Detroit Pistons fans as "Korean Tom" or his Instagram handle, "koreapistonsfan," accidentally made a name for himself in Detroit by adopting the city's sports teams, especially the Pistons, from afar.
What started as a childhood admiration has, in the last two years, turned Hur into an unlikely Detroit ambassador. Along the way, he's shown Detroit natives their city has plenty for outsiders to love.
It started, as many childhood obsessions do, with a video game.
Hur's friend wanted to be the Lakers every time they played "NBA Live." Hur says his friend "made" him be the Pistons.
As a kid growing up in Seoul, Hur said he had little exposure to the NBA. But the video game planted the seed, and soon he started following the sport, and the Pistons. When the team signed Hur's favorite player, Tracy McGrady, in 2010, that sealed the deal for Hur.
But Hur didn't make his first trip to Detroit until 2023. A friend wanted to go to the United States, and asked Hur to go with him. Hur had one condition.
"He only wants to stay in New York," Hur said. "I was like, 'I'll go to America with you. If you go to Detroit with me.'"
His friend obliged, and they spent three days in the Motor City. Hur said he loved it instantly, certainly better than the Big Apple.
He came back last year, and started documenting his stay on Instagram. He quickly built a following by highlighting his favorite restaurants and sites. He's watched a guy pull a large fish out of the Detroit River. He declared Sweetwater Tavern has "The Best Wings in Detroit!!!" Every post starts with "Whatupdoe!" (Cue the "One-of-us!" chants.)
This year, he wanted to be here for the first round of the playoffs. The plane ticket cost him about $2,500, he said, to spend about five days here. He's been honored with a jersey at the Tigers' game, and a chance to meet the Pistons' Cade Cunningham. A photo from that encounter is now the background on his phone.
He stops to take pictures with anyone who asks. He's grateful for the way the city embraced him, he said.
"I don't take anything for granted," Hur said. "They're loving me back, and it's an amazing feeling."
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Meanwhile, his Instagram following has grown to over 20,000.
It's not a side gig, he noted. He doesn't earn any money from it. He did, however, score a spot in the Pistons' "Influencer Suite" at Wednesday's game.