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Detroit came close to winning it all in '87, only to a Joe Dumars missed shot in game 7 against L.A.
Also, Detroit would of probably won it in '86; lost to Boston in the Eastern Conference Finals thanks to a few fluke plays, especially the inbound pass that was stolen and laid in by Dennis Green.
Long story short, Detroit deserves mention as being part of the elite teams of the 80's, no question about it!
Man, those were the days...
The Pistons lost to the Lakers in the NBA Finals in 1988 and the Celtics in the conference finals in 1987. Detroit's two NBA titles with that particular team were in 1988-89 and 1989-90.
For a single season, either the 1982-83 76ers (who went 65-17 in the regular season despite shutting it down late and then went 12-1 in the playoffs) or the 1985-86 Celtics (67-15 regular season) were the best team. For the 1980's as a decade, it was definitely the Lakers. Not only did the Lakers win 5 NBA titles (1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988), they also appeared in 3 of the other NBA Finals in the decade (1983, 1984, 1989) and 1 other time reached the conference finals (1986, when they were upset by Houston). The one time they weren't in the NBA final four, they suffered a major upset early in the playoffs (1981, also to Houston).
Here's the Lakers' decade-long competitors for the mantle of "best team of the 1980's":
Lakers: 5 NBA titles, 8 NBA Finals appearances, 9 conference finals appearances
Celtics: 3 NBA titles, 5 NBA Finals appearances, 8 conference finals appearances
76ers: 1 NBA title, 3 NBA Finals appearances, 5 conference finals appearances
Pistons: 1 NBA title, 2 NBA Finals appearances, 3 conference finals appearances
All those other teams' records, including the Celtics, pale in comparison.
The Pistons lost to the Lakers in the NBA Finals in 1988 and the Celtics in the conference finals in 1987. Detroit's two NBA titles with that particular team were in 1988-89 and 1989-90.
Thanks for correcting me. I had the sequence right but the years offset....
For a single season, either the 1982-83 76ers (who went 65-17 in the regular season despite shutting it down late and then went 12-1 in the playoffs) or the 1985-86 Celtics (67-15 regular season) were the best team. For the 1980's as a decade, it was definitely the Lakers. Not only did the Lakers win 5 NBA titles (1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988), they also appeared in 3 of the other NBA Finals in the decade (1983, 1984, 1989) and 1 other time reached the conference finals (1986, when they were upset by Houston). The one time they weren't in the NBA final four, they suffered a major upset early in the playoffs (1981, also to Houston).
Here's the Lakers' decade-long competitors for the mantle of "best team of the 1980's":
Lakers: 5 NBA titles, 8 NBA Finals appearances, 9 conference finals appearances
Celtics: 3 NBA titles, 5 NBA Finals appearances, 8 conference finals appearances
76ers: 1 NBA title, 3 NBA Finals appearances, 5 conference finals appearances
Pistons: 1 NBA title, 2 NBA Finals appearances, 3 conference finals appearances
All those other teams' records, including the Celtics, pale in comparison.
Wouldn't the Pistons have two NBA titles in the eighties? (89-90)
There is NO tie between the Lakers and Celtics. The Lakers won the most titles in the decade (5) and had the most Finals apperances. They played the Cetics head to head three times taking two. That alone breaks any tie with the Celtics.
The Sixers and Celtics both had great teams in the 80s. But Showtime owned the 1980s.
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