Kevin Durant landing with the Warriors often brought him criticism with the ‘bus driver vs rider’ allegations. And after KD stated he was tired of being second his entire life, many believed this was the reason that he eventually left the Golden State Warriors, despite winning championships with them. Even though he clarified he “just wanted to play ball somewhere else,” the exit was quite controversial. And back then this move raised the question of where did the GSW stand without Durant on the roster. Now recently, Chauncey Billups has taken an even more interesting take — ‘where do the Warriors stand against ’04 Pistons without KD’.

Appearing on Sheed and Tyler show, Billups has claimed the Warriors could have given a tough time to the ’04 Pistons with Durant, but nothing without him. “… Them other teams, would’ve boned them…” he said. He stated he respects and loves all other members of that team, but as far as the pre-KD Warriors are concerned, the Pistons “would’ve washed them”. Notably, Steph Curry’s Warriors won a championship in 2015 and reached the 2016 NBA finals, even without Kevin Durant. But what is the impact of 2x NBA champ’s presence on the roster?

As per the data available on ‘Stat perform’, the Warriors’ net rating dropped to -5.1 when Durant was off the court. And the rating reached +11.9 with his presence on the court. And even if the Warriors won in the playoffs without the 14x All-Star’s presence, there stayed a difference in the level of dominance between the two scenarios. The team had a net rating of +4.3 net rating without KD, but this reached an even more impressive number of +9.2 with Durant.

So Billups’ statement that defeating the Warriors with Durant is tougher than without him seems to be correct. However, his former teammate from the Pistons and the show host, Rasheed Wallace, does not care about this differentiating factor. He once gave his verdict on the popular debate of ’04 Pistons vs 2017 Warriors in his podcast. “I told you, we beat their a**. There’s no way nobody on that team can f**k with me in my prime,” he said.

Analyzing the popular debate of 2004 Pistons vs 2017 Warriors

The 2004 Pistons’ starting five back then included Chauncey Billups, Richard Hamilton, Tayshaun Prince, Rasheed Wallace, and Ben Wallace. Meanwhile, the 2017 Warriors starting five included Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green, Zaza Pachulia, and Klay Thompson. Notably, the Warriors displayed a better record during their championship run.

Warriors stood 67-15 in the regular season and 16-1 in the playoffs as compared to Pistons’ 58-24 in the regular season, and 16-7 in the playoffs. And if these figures do not seem enough, the GSW also has an upper hand in most statistical comparisons. This includes points, rebounds, assists, steals, and 3 points per game in regular season and playoffs.

However, there are certain aspects that seem to bend in favor of the Pistons. One of them is their defense, and in fact, Rasheed was himself a defensive force to be reckoned with. Not only is he a 4x DPOY, but the only player in NBA history to record more blocks than personal fouls. And another advantage to the Pistons could be the depth of their roster. Some other notable names on ’04 Pistons included Mike James, Lindsey Hunter, and Corliss Williamson.

To reach a more concrete conclusion, let’s take into consideration the opinion of a player who played against both teams — Richard Jefferson. He once stated the 2017 Warriors to be the second-best team he saw after the 2001 Lakers. “So respect to ’04 Pistons, great champions, under-talked about team. But against that ’17 Warriors team, it would’ve been a gentleman’s sweep,” he said.

What is your opinion of this entire debate? Let us know your views in the comments.

Stay tuned for more such updates. And to follow what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato, has to say about the infamous Shaq-Kobe feud, Caitlin Clark’s Olympic snub, and more, watch this video.