NBA: Detroit Pistons: Bad Boys Of The NBA

Source:NBA– Isaiah Thomas perhaps sharing a laugh with NBA Commissioner Larry O’Brien, the night he was drafted in the NBA in 1981.

Source:The New Democrat

“The Pistons Reign: Detroit Pistons Bad Boys”

From Max Carey

I don’t know if there’s been a franchise that had a team of an era, that better represented the city they represented, than the Bad Boys Detroit Pistons of the late 1980s early 1990s. Detroit is the ultimate blue-collar, big city, that is the second biggest city of the Midwest, only smaller than Chicago. That is as working class and blue-collar as any big city can be. That has every single challenge and resource that a big city could have. And that is exactly what their Pistons of this era had as well.

The Bad Boys Pistons of course had very good players and in Isiah Thomas’s case a great player a franchise player one of the top five point guards of all time and in the Hall of Fame. But they didn’t beat you because they had overwhelming talent or just by showing up and beating you. The Pistons were a defense first, rebounding second basketball team that scored all of their points off of their defense and ability to get second chance scoring opportunities off of their defense and offensive rebounding. And then teamwork and always getting the ball to the guy with the best chance of scoring.

Other than Isiah, the Pistons of this era didn’t have that great offensive creator who could create points for himself and his teammates. They didn’t have that great post player who could dominate the post and create great mismatches in the post. What they had were guys who moved very well without the ball. Guys who could pass and find the open man. And with center Bill Laimbeer and power forward Rick Mahorn guys who set great screens freeing up their great outside shooters. Which they did have with Isiah Thomas, Joe Dumars and Vinnie Johnson and even center Bill Laimbeer.

The Detroit Pistons were the ultimate team and knew themselves very well and also knew the way they had to win was by being a better team and playing better as a team than their opponents. Especially having to play teams that were simply better than them when it came to talent like the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers. And the way they did was knowing they simply couldn’t outscore their opponents. That they had to do a great job of stopping them from scoring and executing their motion team offense and taking advantage of whatever scoring opportunities that they had.

The legacy of the Detroit Pistons is that they were the ultimate team. Not a collection of stars but a collection of great team players who were all very unselfish who all had one goal in mind. Which was to win championships and many as possible and prove to the world that the Pistons can play basketball and that they didn’t represent losers and that Detroit was more than just a big city with every urban problem a big city can have. That they not only represented Detroit but a lot of America as well. People who aren’t given anything and work very hard for everything that they achieved.

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Detroit Pistons Official: Unforgettable Moments- The Jordan Rules

The Jordan Rules

Source: This piece was originally posted at The New Democrat

The Jordan Rules was a Detroit Pistons defense that was designed to stop the great Michael Jordan from the Chicago Bulls. It was created by the great Pistons point guard Isaiah Thomas and one of the Pistons assistant coaches. I believe Brendan Malone and this defense was designed to let anyone else beat the Pistons besides Michael Jordan. Which meant anyone else from the Bulls could beat them and have big games which of course didn’t happen pre-1991. Whether it was Scottie Pippen, Horace Grant, Bill Cartwright whoever it might be.

This all came about because in the late 1980s the Pistons and Bulls, Detroit vs. Chicago which is a great sports rivalry because of those two big cities to begin with and that they are fairly close together and they met in the NBA Eastern Conference Playoffs four straight years from 1988-91. Two very physical and good defensive teams meeting in the playoffs to go to the NBA Finals. So these series always meant a lot and this was a time when the Pistons were looking to win their first NBA Championship after coming very close in 1987 and 88. With the Bulls looking to take their place and jump ahead of them.

The Jordan Rules itself were fairly simple. Again anyone but Jordan can beat them meaning anyone besides Michael can take open shots and get good looks at the basket. Now they still have to execute and take advantage of those opportunities. But when MJ has the ball at least two guys on him every time he tries to drive and keep him off of the wings where he got most of those incredible dunks. Force him into the lane and to go up against the Pistons big men where he would either take a hard foul. Or would just be stopped with the Pistons getting the ball back.

And the other thing being make MJ work on defense. Whoever he is guarding in the Pistons backcourt. Or if he’s guarding Mark Aguirre the Pistons small forward. Make MJ run through a lot of hard screens from either Bill Laimbeer, Rick Mahorn, James Edwards or Dennis Rodman. And give Jordan’s man a lot of shots and good looks at the basket. So MJ doesn’t have anytime to rest on the court. And pre-1991 before Scottie Pippen became the great player that he became the Jordan Rules was the only successful defense against Michael Jordan.
Detroit Pistons Official: Unforgettable Moments- The Jordan Rules

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Lamar Matic: NBA 1986- Eastern Conference 1st Round Game 1- Washington Wizards @ Philadelphia 76ers: 4th Quarter

Source:Lamar Matic– the Wizards and 76ers from 1986.

“One of the greatest NBA comebacks ever. The Washington Bullets are down by 17 with 4 minutes left and seems like have lost the first playoffs game of 1986. However, veteran Dan Roundfield scoring on one end and Charles Barkley with Julius Erving choking on the other lets the Bullets get back in the game and win it with an impossible game winning three by Dudley Bradley. 1986 NBA Eastern Conference Playoffs Round 1 Game 1.”

From Lamar Matic

Definitely one of the most surprising comeback victories of all-time and perhaps the best comeback in Bullets playoff history.

You come back from eighteen points with four minutes left in the game especially in a playoff game, you are getting a lot of breaks with the team with the lead falling asleep and thinking they’ve already won the game. Which is what the 76ers did, as well as the Bullets never giving up and coming up with a lot of great plays. Especially on defense, but scoring every time they had the ball.

When you have a big lead like this, all you really have to do is work the clock, don’t turn the ball over and hit your foul shots. You do all of those things and even if the other team scores every time they have the ball, they won’t have enough time to come all the way back. The 76ers failed to even do these basic fundamental things late in this game.

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Ginoong Kamote: Vintage NBA- Moses Malone: ‘The Chairman of The Boards’

Source:Ginoong Kamote– Moses Malone, when he was with the Houston Rockets, playing the Boston Celtics, perhaps in 1981.

Source:The Daily Press

“Moses Malone is an American former National Basketball Association (NBA) basketball player who also played in the American Basketball Association (ABA), as well as on the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks, Houston Rockets, Milwaukee Bucks, Philadelphia 76ers, San Antonio Spurs and Washington Bullets. Malone played 21 seasons in the NBA. Before retiring from basketball, he was the last ABA participant to still be playing in the NBA. In 2001, he was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame”

From Ginoong Kamote

Just from looking at the background of this photo, I would say this game was played at the Atlanta Omni, with the Philadelphia 76ers playing the Atlanta Hawks. But that’s all I know about it.

Source:NBA-TV– one of the thing that made Moses Malone so effective as an NBA big man, was his ability not just to get to the free throw line, but make his free throws. He always shot around 75-80% from the foul line, which always made him one of the best free throw shooting big men in the NBA. Which put even more pressure on the other teams big men, because not only where they in foul trouble a lot, but they were also giving up a lot of free points to Moses and his team.

Moses Malone was simply a bull with a lot of skills who was almost impossible to box out with his brute strength, quickness and determination. Whose one of the top five centers of all-time because of what he could do in the paint both offensively and defensively. Who also might be the best offensive rebounder of all-time as well. Kareem, Wilt, Bill Russell and maybe Hakeem and that would be the only centers I would take over Moses and I could easily have Moses over Hakeem, but that would be a tossup.

Imagine a man 6’9-6’10 260 pounds or so, of brute strength and muscle, but who was also very quick and athletic. The man was impossible to box out for the most part, I’m not sure Wilt Chamberlain could box out Moses in his prime. The man was simply a bull physically as a man, but with a heart bigger than that. And when he was finally put on a very good team, a great team, one of the best teams of all-time in the NBA, the 1983 Philadelphia 76ers, you really got to see how great he was and how great he could make other players, including other great players.

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