On paper, the 2003-04 LA Lakers team could easily be regarded as one of the greatest collections of superstars ever assembled. With experienced Shaquille O’Neal and Gary Payton capable of making a two-way impact, the team also boasted an aging but still productive Karl Malone, who continued to score in double figures, along with a formidable and ascending Kobe Bryant .
The Lakers’ intimidating reputation was so strong that when Chauncey Billups told his wife the Pistons would face them in the Finals, she refused to believe it.
Billups on how his wife showed no faith in the Pistons
The 2004 Pistons were a defensive juggernaut, with Ben and Rasheed Wallace controlling the paint, both averaging three blocks per game. Additionally, four of their five starters averaged more than one steal a game. Their defensive dominance was so well-known that many overlooked the fact they had four players averaging double-digit points.
In contrast, the Lakers held the 6th-best offensive rating in the league, with all four of their starters averaging double figures. Kobe, in particular, improved his play in the playoffs, elevating his scoring average to 24.5 points per game. Given their collective offensive firepower and the fact that the Pistons narrowly escaped elimination in the second round against the New Jersey Nets, coach Phil Jackson's team was widely seen as the favorites.
Nonetheless, Billups was one of those players who knew that the Pistons were aware of how to break down the Lakers. In an interview with Marc Spears and Jay Harris, the five-time All-Star revealed how he shared his confidence with his wife. However, she couldn’t believe those claims, considering the star power present on the Lakers team.
"True story - before the series started, I told my wife we were going to beat them. My wife was like ‘Man what? They got Kobe. They got....’ she's going on the list," Billups said . "I felt like we could guard them. They had the better players obviously, but they didn’t have a better team."
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The Pistons did indeed feed on the Lakers’ biggest voids
As Mr. Big Shot astutely mentioned, Detroit largely understood that the Lakers’ success largely depended on how effectively Shaq and Bryant dismantled their defense. Even after their series was tied at one apiece, Billups & Co. remained unfazed. They were willing to let one of the Lakers’ stars score game-high stats, but their strategy focused on disrupting their collective rhythm and efficiency.
Ultimately, the Pistons managed to hold the Lakers, who averaged 98.2 points per game in the regular season to merely 78.3 points in the last three games of the ‘04 Finals. Even though ‘Diesel’ and the ‘Black Mamba’ logged game-high points in Games 4 and 5, respectively, they were held to a combined 40% shooting from the field in those games.
What was perhaps most impressive was how the Pistons operated collectively. While O’Neal and Bryant alternated in their attempts to dominate the game, three of Detroit’s starters combined for 60 points in Game 3 and 66 points in Game 4. In Game 5, all of their starters scored in double digits, securing the series victory.
In the end, despite skepticism from even their loved ones, the Pistons players were never intimidated by the more accomplished Lakers team when it mattered the most.
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