The Detroit Pistons of the 2000s were one of the best and most competitive teams in the NBA, going all the way to the Finals and winning one championship thanks to their incredible defense.
They had a group of players willing to sacrifice for each other and who knew one another very well, so much so that they could use different tactics to make them play way better in the middle of games.
That’s how they won the 2004 NBA championship and went to the Finals the next season while becoming one of the powerhouses in the Eastern Conference. This team did very good things and starred in some controversial moments that will last forever in fans’ memories.
Chauncey Billups Once Used The Referees To Make Rasheed Wallace Focus
They were very smart, and Chauncey Billups was the perfect example of that. The point guard knew his teammate Rasheed Wallace too well, and he used to make referees call techs on Sheed to get him fired up and focus on the game.
During an interview, the now Portland Trail Blazers head coach revealed how he used to talk to referees to pit them against Wallace, get his former teammate a tech, and then unleash him against rivals, which worked out almost all the time.
“The one thing that would make Sheed really mad, and once he gets mad you can throw him anything and he would score on anybody, it was him getting a tech. So one night, he was talking crazy, but he’s also not engaged in the game. So I went to the refs, and said, ‘hey, listen, man, you can’t let him talk to you like that. You gotta put an end to this.’ Boom, calls a tech on him, right? He goes crazy. Next five times, I drop it to him, he goes 4-for-5. I go to the refs and say, ‘I appreciate it.'”
Wallace always had issues with refs, and he never hesitated to bark at them. He collected plenty of techs during his career, which sometimes worked in his favor. Billups knew that too well, and he took advantage of that. Basketball IQ, they call it.
We sincerely appreciate and respect you as a reader of our site. It would help us a lot if you follow us on Google News because of the latest update.
Thanks for following us. We really appreciate your support.
