Forgotten Champs: The 2004 Pistons

On Sunday 6th June, 2004, two teams stepped on court for Game One of the NBA Finals.

Of the five players who wore the famed ‘Lakers’ name across their purple and gold jerseys, four were future Hall-of-Famers. On their bench sat Phil Jackson, arguably the greatest coach in NBA history. The Lakers had won championships in three of the past four seasons.

Of the other five players who wore the less familiar red and blue of the Detroit Pistons, four had started their careers with other teams. On their bench sat Larry Brown, a well respected but journeyman coach. 14 years had passed since Detroit last reached the NBA Finals.

Between their starters and coach, LA had won thirty-two NBA championships.

Detroit? One.

LA were expected to win easily. Before the season started, current Lakers superstars Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal had been joined by ageing but capable former superstars in Karl Malone and Gary Payton. The Pistons were led by Chauncey Billups, a point guard who had played for four teams in five seasons before landing in Detroit; and Ben Wallace, an undrafted, undersized centre.

Total All-Star appearances by LA’s starters: Forty.

Detroit? Four.

Since Michael Jordan left the Chicago Bulls in 1998, the Eastern Conference representative in the Finals had been sacrificial lambs, there only because some Eastern team had to be. The Pistons looked to be following in the footsteps of the Sixers, Nets and Pacers—a team the Lakers would kill on their way to another title.

The series was as uneven as the experts predicted, and ended in five games. Their season over, Detroit began their long summer.

With a championship.

The Pistons had stunned the world, pulling off one of the biggest upsets in NBA history. A team assembled of players few wanted had taken down Shaq, Kobe, the Mailman, the Glove, and the Zen Master. And it wasn’t even close—if not for an overtime-forcing three by Bryant in Game Two, Detroit would probably have swept the series.

What happened? Who were these Motor City marauders who’d stolen a title from the league’s most popular franchise?

Chauncey Billups, point guard. A scorer at a position normally associated with distributors, Billups spent the first five years of his career failing to fit in at four other teams. But in Detroit, under Larry Brown’s tutelage, he’d blossomed. When the Pistons needed someone to knock down an important shot or restore calm to the team, Chauncey stepped up.

Richard ‘Rip’ Hamilton, shooting guard. Rip had stolen and shortened Reggie Miller’s game, popping off screens for mid-range jumpshots the way Reggie did for threes. Rip was a one-man motion offence, always on the go, relying on his conditioning, quickness and balance to get him open shots. Hamilton often deserved an assist without touching the ball, his cuts causing defences to shift towards him, leaving other Pistons open.

Tayshaun Prince, small forward. A lanky defensive menace whose long limbs and solid defensive fundamentals frustrated opposing scorers. Prince was good for the occasional post score, timely three-pointer, or chase-down block.

Rasheed Wallace, power forward. Talented, fiery, unpredictable. In any game Rasheed could score in the post, hit a three, block a shot, and get ejected for screaming at a ref.

Ben Wallace, centre. When the team needed an emotional push, Ben provided it. Listed at 6-feet 9-inches but probably smaller, Wallace handled bigger big men with a wild intensity that helped him become one of the league’s all-time best defenders.

Larry Brown, coach. Brown had a reputation for managing teams to surprising success, then eventually wearing players down with his constant, nitpicking emphasis on ‘playing the right way’, and then leaving for pastures new. But his approach had worked wonders in Detroit.

The Pistons bench also gave them options. Need more speed or defensive pressure? Stick in Lindsey Hunter and Mike James. Need more size to battle Shaq? Sub in giant Thunderbird-lookalike Elden Campbell. Detroit’s President of Basketball Operations, Joe Dumars, had pieced together a championship team with parts no other teams really wanted. He’d also wisely drafted Darko Miličić over Dwyane Wade and Carmelo Anthony and Chris Bosh…

Billups had dominated Gary Payton on his way to winning Finals MVP. Prince had frustrated Bryant defensively. The better defended Kobe was, the more he wanted to play hero ball and shoot LA to victory, which played right into Detroit’s hands. Ben Wallace was all over the court, chasing down rebounds and blocking shots. The Pistons played their trademark slow-down offence to perfection, often running 20 seconds off the shot clock before Rip hit a jumper or a pick-and-pop got Rasheed an open three.

The only Laker who had continued success against Detroit’s defence was Shaq, who used his bulk to overcome Ben Wallace’s defensive prowess, but a wave of Pistons blue made even getting the ball to O’Neal difficult for LA.

How did Detroit become champions? With such an upset, theories were bandied about. Karl Malone had been injured throughout the series and didn’t play at all in Game Five. Could he have made a difference? Malone was in the nineteenth and final year of his NBA career. Could he really have prevented those four Detroit victories, three of which were by double figures? Or maybe the emotional burden of Bryant’s legal issues in Colorado had caught up with him? Perhaps Kobe and Shaq’s turbulent relationship had boiled over and affected the entire team? Maybe, but both men had played well enough to help LA eliminate the defending champion Spurs two rounds previous, then take down a strong Minnesota team in the Conference Finals.

For Detroit, there was one way to silence those critics and silence those what-if scenarios: win another title. The champion Detroit teams of ‘89 and ‘90 are still part of NBA lore. Would they be if they had just a single title? If this Pistons team wanted to leave a legacy behind, they’d have to win another title in 2005.

During the 2004-05 season a few teams positioned themselves as contenders to take Detroit’s title. In the West, the Phoenix Suns, Dallas Mavericks, and ever-present San Antonio Spurs battled for top seed. Detroit’s more interesting rival, however, loomed closer to home. The Miami Heat had Dwyane Wade, already a premier shooting guard in just his second year; and Shaq— the one player who’d had success against the Pistons in last year’s Finals. Miami finished the season top of the East, five games ahead of Detroit.

The Heat swept the first two rounds of playoffs, getting to the Conference Finals without losing a game. Detroit beat Philadelphia in five games in Round One, but were down 2-1 to Indiana in the second round before recovering to win in six games, setting up a Conference Finals matchup with the Heat.

Five games in, Miami were up 3-2, and Detroit were on the brink of elimination. Then the Pistons caught a (some would say ‘another’) lucky break. Wade had to sit out Game Six with a rib injury, and Detroit evened the series. The Heat’s All-Star guard returned for Game Seven but wasn’t at full form. Detroit won (in Miami, no less) and returned to the Finals, this time to face the San Antonio Spurs.

The Spurs had Tim Duncan, one of the greatest big men in NBA history; Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili, both young but very good players; a defensive menace in Bruce Bowen; and a bunch of three-point shooters like Brent Barry and Robert Horry to knock down shots if Duncan was double-teamed. On their bench they had legendary coach Gregg Popovich. The Spurs had won championships in 1999 and 2003. They had homecourt advantage. They were, simply, a force to be reckoned with.

San Antonio won the first two games by fifteen and twenty-one points. Had Detroit become the Eastern Conference fodder they were supposed to be the year before? No, they returned to Detroit, blew out the Spurs in Games Three and Four, and tied the series.

Game Fives come in two distinct flavours:

Bland: A team is winning the series 3-1 and almost certainly going to win the series, whether in five games or not.

Tasty: Teams are tied at two games apiece. The series standings are essentially reset; it’s now best of three, winner takes all. These Game Fives are normally the tipping point of a series. This game was Tasty.

Game Five embodied everything great about basketball: two evenly-matched teams playing at an elite level, huge plays, pressure shots, near-disaster, and redemption.

The game is close throughout. With 45 seconds to go, Detroit are up 89-88. A screen forces Ben Wallace to switch onto Manu Ginobili. Now the Pistons’ big man is dragged out to the perimeter to try and stop the sly Argentinian. A natural lefty, Manu surprises Ben by driving right and getting to the hoop. The ball is knocked away, but Manu recovers and gets the ball to Duncan. Rasheed has to foul to prevent an easy layup. Two shots for the T-Robot.

Duncan, a career 69% foul shooter, steps to the line. His first shot is short.

Could Detroit dare to consider the idea of Duncan also missing the second, leaving them with the lead and the ball with 33 seconds to go?

Duncan eyeballs the rim. Hours pass. He fires.

Good.

Tied game. Timeout, Detroit.

The Pistons inbound. Chauncey drives, but Detroit’s execution is off. Rasheed ends up in the lane, bringing Duncan with him. Billups, now trapped by Spurs players, tries and fails to draw a foul. Bowen grabs the rebound

What’s Rasheed Wallace doing?

The game is tied when Bowen gets the ball. The last thing Detroit want to do is foul. Yet here’s Rasheed, his arms draped over Bowen’s shoulders. Did ‘Sheed think his team were down and had to foul? Or has he lost his mind? Thankfully for Detroit, the refs don’t call a foul. San Antonio take a timeout. Now the Spurs have a chance to win.

Manu catches the inbounds pass and drives against Prince. This time Ginobili goes to his familiar left hand and lobs a shot high over Tayshaun. Ben Wallace goes for the block, leaving Duncan alone underneath. The shot misses. Timmy misses a point-blank tip-in, and Rasheed rebounds.

As the final seconds tick away, Rasheed calls a time-out.

Detroit has no time-outs.

Calling a time-out when your team has none left is a technical foul. San Antonio would be given a free throw—one wide open shot, no defenders. A chance to win the game.

Chris Webber’s career was forever marred when he made the same mistake in an NCAA championship game. Webber was a 19 year-old collegiate athlete at the time. Rasheed Wallace is a 30-year-old NBA veteran who’s just made a career-defining error.

But Wallace gets a reprieve, in the form of the game clock. The buzzer sounded first, so his time-out call doesn’t count. Salvation, and the end of regulation. Here comes overtime.

The extra period is more typically tough, defensive basketball. Down by four with the game clock ticking away, the Spurs break down Detroit’s defence. The ball ends up in Robert Horry’s hands, who dunks, trimming the lead to two.

Billups gets another chance to ice the game. A pick and roll leaves him guarded by Duncan. With 15 seconds left in the game, Chauncey crosses Duncan over and gets to the hoop, but Horry’s quick to help and Duncan to recover, causing Chauncey to rush the shot. The ball is up, on the rim and…out. Duncan rebounds and calls time-out. The Spurs still have a chance—down two with nine seconds left.

At the opposite end of the court, Horry waits on the sideline to inbound. He’s guarded by Rasheed Wallace. Horry passes in to Ginobili, who catches deep in the near-side corner.

And let’s freeze the game right there.

Now, Ginobili is a crafty scorer. He’s the guy the Spurs want handling the ball here. But the situation isn’t too dire for Detroit either—Prince is all over Manu, his height and reach taking away Ginobili’s chance of launching a game-winning three. Manu would have to get around Prince (while Ben Wallace lurks nearby) to sink a game-tying shot. Detroit would probably get the ball back and, if the game went to overtime, they’d be on their home floor with a raucous crowd behind them. With the moment paused, Detroit’s chances look pretty good.

But, of course, Rasheed Wallace has lost his mind.

For some reason, Rasheed comes down to trap Ginobili in the corner, leaving the now-hot Horry wide open. Horry catches the return pass and launches a clutch three.

Robert Horry’s legacy? Hitting clutch threes. In this game he’d been heating up since the end of the third quarter, scoring 18 points and hitting four three-pointers. Prince throws himself at Horry, but the ball is already in the air. Is it going in?

Of course it is.

The balls drop through the net. Silence.

Detroit take a timeout. They inbound; a hasty Hamilton jumpshot doesn’t even draw iron. The clock expires. San Antonio head home for the rest of the series, needing just one win in two home games to clinch another championship.

Despite Game Five’s outcome, the Pistons are resilient. They retaliate by winning game six, but they were never going to take two straight in San Antonio. The Spurs hold them off in Game Seven and add another trophy to their collection.

What-ifs are pointless, but it’s hard not to think Could Detroit have another title if they had won Game Five? Another efficient offensive play, one less defensive rotation, and the series could have been different. The Pistons would still have had to win one of two games in San Antonio. Unlikely, but possible.

Surely, a team that won one title and came achingly-close to repeating as champions would be back the following year? Well, they were, but in the annals of NBA history, only champions are remembered. Detroit were still an elite team, but no longer the best. The downward spiral had begun.

First to go was Larry Brown. As the Pistons battled towards the Finals, rumours circulated that Brown was shopping his CV around; the famed restless coach was itching to move on again. Detroit management bought out Brown’s contract shortly after the Finals ended, and he left to coach the Knicks.

With their core starters still intact, Detroit again returned to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2006. Once again they faced the Heat. With some new additions and a fully healthy Wade, Miami took the series in six games and went on to win the championship. After the season, Ben Wallace signed for the Chicago Bulls.

In 2007, Detroit lost in the Conference Finals to Lebron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

In 2008, the Pistons returned to the Conference Finals before losing to the eventual champion Boston Celtics. Joe Dumars knew Detroit’s championship window was closing quickly. He took a risk, sending Billups to Denver and receiving Allen Iverson in return. Would The Answer be the key to putting the Pistons back on top?

Nope. And it was all downhill from there.

In the 2009 playoffs, the Pistons were swept in the first round by the Cavaliers. In the off-season Rasheed left for Boston, while his former partner in the paint, Ben Wallace, returned to Detroit. Ben, however, could never recapture his high level of play.

In 2011, the Pistons waived Rip Hamilton. In 2012, Ben Wallace retired. In 2013, Tayshaun Prince was traded to Memphis. And, just like that, the last remaining player from that championship team was gone.

From 2003 to 2008, the Pistons appeared in six straight Conference Finals and two consecutive Finals. In that period they lost to the eventual champions three times (Spurs in ‘05, Heat in ‘06, Celtics in ‘08). Detroit showed consistent excellence, but not greatness. A team’s inclusion in NBA history is decided by championships and sometimes one just isn’t enough to keep a team memorable. If the Pistons had won a second title in 2005, maybe their story would be more fondly remembered—a composed, defensively-minded unit of role players taking down stars. As it stands, that Pistons team is little more than a footnote in modern NBA history.

As the 2013-14 season approached, the Pistons signed a new point guard. Well, maybe not so new—Chauncey Billups returned to wear Pistons red and blue once more. For the veteran Billups, this may be the final stop in his NBA career. No one expects success from this Detroit team, but it would be fitting for Billups to retire there, where his glory years happened, where he played on basketball’s biggest stage.

If you can bear to watch as the Pistons’ current roster take the floor in the Palace of Auburn Hills, look up to the rafters above. A banner hangs there as a quiet reminder of that 2004 championship, a title mostly forgotten, and of a team that was very good and, almost, great.