Winning an NBA championship is no easy task, but some were even harder to win than others. Hall of Famer Tracy McGrady thinks the Detroit Pistons’ triumph in 2004 was the greatest of the lot, as they beat the Los Angeles Lakers, who were led by Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant, in the NBA Finals.
“The greatest duo, Shaq, Kobe, winning three championships, how they dominated the early 2000s, and you as a Detroit Pistons team come and beat them 4-1, that was very impressive to knock off Kobe and Shaq in that era,” McGrady said. “I just never thought I’d see it while they were together, how they swept through the Western Conference, I mean, just wiped through the Western Conference. I like that as being the most surprising and tough championship to win, to dethrone Kobe and Shaq.”
It was undoubtedly an impressive feat that the Pistons accomplished that year. No one gave them much of a chance heading into the Finals, and they crushed the Lakers in five games.
Three of their four wins were by double digits as their defense, which was anchored by Ben Wallace, just shut down that Lakers offense. LA only managed to score more than 90 points once, and that was in Game 2, which they won in overtime.
In Game 3, the Lakers only scored 68 points, which remains their lowest total in a playoff game since the franchise moved to Los Angeles. To so comprehensively beat a team with two of the greatest players we have ever seen in O’Neal and Bryant was very impressive, even if the two were clashing behind the scenes.
Chauncey Billups would end up winning Finals MVP with averages of 21.0 points, 3.2 rebounds, 5.2 assists, and 1.2 steals per game, but it was a total team effort that won them the title. There was no real “superstar” on that team, which is what made that triumph all the more special. All that being said, though, the Pistons weren’t the first team to beat the Kobe-Shaq Lakers in that era.
After the Lakers achieved their historic three-peat in 2002, it was the San Antonio Spurs who stopped them from winning four in a row. The Spurs beat the Lakers in the Western Conference Semifinals in 2003 in six games and then went on to win the title. So, McGrady wasn’t completely on point with what he said there.
Chauncey Billups Believes LeBron James’ Career Would Have Changed Had The Pistons Drafted Carmelo Anthony In 2003
While the 2003-04 season is one that the Pistons and their fans look back upon fondly, they view the 2003 NBA Draft as a huge missed opportunity. Detroit had the second pick and selected Darko Milicic over Carmelo Anthony, which was a huge mistake. Had the Pistons drafted Anthony in 2003, Billups believes LeBron James’ whole career would have changed.
“If we do get Melo, when was LeBron ever gonna take over? That was a hell of a rookie season,” said Billups. “But now we’re in the same division, he gonna get raised right in the game. Bron is Bron and we all know he’s incredible but when was he ever gonna beat and be better than [us with Melo]? We all thought we were taking Melo.”
The Pistons would return to the NBA Finals in 2005 as they looked to create a dynasty of their own. They would lose to the Spurs in seven games, however, and then never made it back to the big stage. They lost in the Conference Finals to the Miami Heat in 2006 and then to LeBron’s Cleveland Cavaliers in 2007.
Had the Pistons drafted Anthony, perhaps they would have been the dominant force in the Conference for many more years, and James might have never been able to get past them.
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