His occupation of the middle allowed Ben to do what he did best: roam and conquer. Rasheed was a formidable presence in the restricted area and far more adept at defending companion big men than Okur. When Ben operated alongside Okur, the Pistons out-swatted their counterparts by only 2.5. The Wallace-times-two frontcourt dominated the paint, blocking 5.2 more shots per 100 possessions than their opponents when they were on the hardwood together. With Sheed replacing Mehmet Okur, the new three-man union of Billups and the Wallaces outscored opponents by 18.2 points per 100 possessions, up from a 9.1 mark with Okur. Three iterations were the most successful of any of Detroit’s most-common combinations. The Pistons no longer existed just as a nice story they were an instant contender.Īmong the team’s 20 most-used lineups, Wallace was a part of only five. The acquisition of Rasheed Wallace dramatically shifted the team’s trajectory. The Lakers operated like a bunch of individuals.ĭetroit certainly executed in unison during the 2004 season, but the singular parts mattered a great deal. But the focus primarily shifted to team basketball. Payton and Malone were injured in the Finals, which was certainly a factor. The media immediately scrambled for narratives to explain the shocking victory. They held the superstar Lakers to a 96.1 offensive rating, more than nine points per 100 possessions under their regular season average, en route to winning four of five games. The Pistons uglied up the series in a way that surely made Laimbeer proud. If the team with the best player wins, they were at an even bigger disadvantage than normal since, between talent and postseason experience, they might not have enjoyed one of the four best athletes on the floor.įuture Hall-of-Fame status didn’t matter. The Pistons’ outlook was, in turn, bleak. Newcomers Karl Malone and Gary Payton desperately sought titles after having previously run into a legend of their own when taking on Michael Jordan. The Lakers rostered four future Hall of Famers. But now they faced the original Super Team of the 2000s-the Los Angeles Lakers. Sure, they made it through the weak Eastern Conference. The gap never felt wider than when they entered the 2004 NBA Finals. They were seemingly always going to be less talented than their opponents if they made it deep into the playoffs. But they never felt like a championship squad. The team played an ugly, blue-collar type of basketball, befitting their namesake. The team already possessed the point guard with something to prove in journeyman Chauncey Billups, who by that time had earned the nicknamed “Mr. The result: back-to-back championships in 19 despite significant talent deficits.Īnd then, in 2004, the Bad Boys were reborn.ĭetroit acquired Rasheed Wallace in February, who, alongside Ben Wallace, created a formidable interior tandem unlike anything the Motor City had seen since Rodman left town. But they habitually produced victories with terrific interior defenders in Dennis Rodman and Bill Laimbeer and a point guard in Isiah Thomas who always played like he had something to prove. The Detroit Pistons have found a way around that throughout their history, and i t began with the Bad Boys.Ĭompeting against legends like Larry Bird, Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan, the Pistons rarely had the best player on the court in playoff series during the late 1980s and early 1990s. Once rotations shorten and opponents face off as many as seven times in a row, the side with the most accomplished athlete generally wins. Elite scorers and facilitators have an enormous impact when on the court. We see it consistently in playoff series.
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