With a 14–68 record, the Detroit Pistons had the most disastrous season in 2023-24. But nearly two decades earlier, the franchise boasted a unique team that Pistons’ “Bad Boy” Isiah Thomas believed in. He had faith that the Pistons would be able to defeat the heavy favorites Kobe Bryant’s Lakers. 

Tayshaun Prince recalls Thomas was already confident that a Game 1 win would be theirs. In fact, he was so sure that he shifted the focus to discussing Game 2. In 2004, cheers alone weren’t enough. The Pistons needed a pep talk from their former champions to believe they could defeat the Lakers’ Championship Dynasty. 

Speaking of Thomas’ opinion about the team, he said, “He (thomas) said…ain’t even worry about game 1. Y’all going to win that cuz they ain’t going to know what’s going to hit him. They haven’t seen nothing like y’all before so he just started talking about from Game 2 on,” on the Knuckleheads podcast.

The Lakers had been champions for three straight years. So, defeating a roster led by Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant was a big deal. This is one of the games, where he had a lot of regrets. Like Zeke mentioned, the Lakers, including Bryant, weren’t prepared for the Pistons. 

After defeating the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Pistons went on to take down the Lakers in just five games. The Pistons had an impressive defensive game in 2004. Much of this was reflected in their starting five, Prince, Chauncey Billups, Richard Hamilton, Rasheed Wallace, and 4x DPOY Ben Wallace.

The former champions’ talk did the trick for the Pistons then. “Just to hear those Bad Boys guys talk to us about their experience in the finals, you know, what to expect, what to get prepared for, how to handle the stage… it made it even more special,” Price iterates.

The Lakers, on the other end, were forced into making numerous adjustments they hadn’t prepared for and Kobe was not one bit happy. 

Detroit Pistons defense was too much for the Lakers 

“When we got to Detroit, they forced us to play our offense 94 feet. We weren’t ready, and we couldn’t do it, and everything capitulated from there,” Bryant said.

While Kobe preferred not to dwell on it, he never forgot the defeat. In a conversation, he once admitted that the Pistons were the better team. The Lakers were unprepared for such defensive pressure, as Zeke had predicted, and struggled to execute their game plan. “It still eats at me. It absolutely does,” Bryant said about the 4-1 loss. “

Kobe was particularly upset about losing to his high school rival, Hamilton, against whom he had a 6-3 record. “And I’m upset that I gave Richard Hamilton something to brag about, because up until that point, he never beat me. And that just kills me,” Bryant said. 

Hamilton shared similar sentiments. Having previously been defeated by Bryant in the Pennsylvania State Championship, he sought to turn the tables in the NBA, which led to the Pistons’ shocking upset of the Lakers. The last time the franchise experienced such success was during the 1989-90 season with a record of 63-19 when Thomas’ team defeated the Chicago Bulls. In response to the host’s question, it was Thomas and the rest who fueled up the Pistons’ courage.

Stay tuned for more such updates and join us for the exciting second episode of the “Dual Threat Show” as our host BG12 sits down with Georgia Bulldogs star and Mountain West All-Freshman Team Selection, Asia Avinger.