Shaquille O’Neal has become the center of a lot of NBA-related controversies in the last few days.
Before coming under fire for needlessly hating on Zion Williamson’s second career triple-double, Shaq slammed the Detroit Pistons on national TV. He first expressed his disregard for the franchise on his podcast before intentionally discrediting their achievements on TNT and saying Chauncey Billups is their head coach.
The Pistons social media team had enough and reminded Shaq that one of his greatest career losses was delivered to him by Detroit in the 2004 NBA Finals.
Nothing new here https://t.co/wyj5wWLZsd pic.twitter.com/XaibZ7WxDS
— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) March 13, 2025
To understand the context behind this, we have to go back to the early 2000s when Shaq was inarguably the best player in the NBA. He led the Lakers to a three-peat from 2000 to 2002, winning three consecutive Finals MVPs.
The cracks began to form in 2003 as they lost to the San Antonio Spurs before the Finals, their first Playoff series loss of the 21st century. They returned to the Finals in 2004 after making bold veteran signings such as Karl Malone and Gary Payton, which led to many easily picking the Lakers to win their fourth title in five years.
Their opponents were the unglamorous Detroit Pistons, who made it this far by running one of the greatest defenses in NBA history. The Lakers with Shaq, Kobe Bryant, and their incredible veteran supporting cast were expected to breeze past Detroit.
The opposite wound up happening, as the Pistons comfortably won the series 4-1, ending Shaq’s tenure as a Laker. Internal problems were brewing in LA, but the Pistons completely embarrassed them in the Finals and it led to Shaq being shipped to the Eastern Conference on the Miami Heat.
Shaq averaged 26.6 points and 10.8 rebounds in the 2004 NBA Finals, struggling to make the impact we had seen him have in years past. It marked the end of an era, although Shaq would continue playing at the highest level in the NBA.
Shaq’s Rivalry With The Pistons Is Deeper Than Just The 2004 Finals
A fact that the Pistons social media post didn’t bring up right now is what happened the very next season. Shaq’s first year in Miami saw him end the year as an MVP finalist, with the franchise making it to the 2005 Eastern Conference Finals. They met the reigning NBA Champion Pistons in what was a revenge matchup for Shaq.
The Pistons still came out on top, winning this series 4-3 before losing the Finals to the Spurs 4-3. Shaq averaged 20.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 2.0 blocks in this series against Detroit, but was thwarted nonetheless.
O’Neal would secure his fourth championship in 2006, this time finally beating the Pistons in the Eastern Conference Finals while averaging 21.7 points, 10.5 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks. His time as a contender lapsed soon after this, and so did the Pistons’ time atop the East.
The franchise hasn’t come close to scaling those heights, currently in the midst of a six-year Playoff drought. That’s expected to end this season, so Shaq should definitely pay more attention to the Pistons as a franchise on the rise.
Chauncey Billups might have brought success to the Pistons in 2004, but this coach is J.B. Bickerstaff, who first ended decades of non-LeBron failures in Cleveland before rejuvenating Detroit in his first year with the franchise.
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