Head coach Chuck Daly Owner(s) William Davidson | General manager Jack McCloskey Record 63–19 (.768) | |
Arena The Palace of Auburn Hills Place Division: 1st (Central)
Conference: 1st (Eastern) | ||
The 1988-89 NBA season was the Pistons' 41st season in the NBA and 32nd season in the Detroit metropolitan area. The Pistons moved from the Pontiac Silverdome to the brand-new Palace of Auburn Hills before the start of the season, which culminated in the Pistons' first NBA championship, sweeping the Lakers in four games in a rematch from last year's NBA Finals and avenging their NBA Finals loss.
Contents
- Regular season
- Playoffs
- Eastern Conference First Round
- Eastern Conference Semifinals
- Eastern Conference Finals
- NBA Finals
- Award winners
- References
The team's season roster is featured in the video games NBA 2K16 and NBA 2K17.
Regular season
On February 15, 1989, the Pistons traded Adrian Dantley to the Dallas Mavericks for Mark Aguirre. Dantley was unhappy relegating the leadership role on the Pistons to Isiah Thomas, while Aguirre had clashed with his coaches and teammates in Dallas. Aguirre was more amenable to deferring to Thomas, and accepted his role in Chuck Daly's system. His ability to shoot the three, post up, run the floor, and pass was instrumental in the growth of the team.
Playoffs
After finishing with the best record in the NBA, the Pistons swept through the first two rounds of the playoffs. In the Eastern Conference finals, they faced the Chicago Bulls, whom they had defeated in the conference semifinals a year earlier. Although the Bulls were able to win two of the first three games, the Pistons' use of their "Jordan Rules" defense wore out Michael Jordan, setting up Detroit's second consecutive NBA Finals appearance against the Los Angeles Lakers.
Eastern Conference First Round
(1) Detroit Pistons vs. (8) Boston Celtics: Pistons win series 3-0
Last Playoff Meeting: 1988 Eastern Conference Finals (Detroit won 4-2)
Eastern Conference Semifinals
(1) Detroit Pistons vs. (5) Milwaukee Bucks: Pistons win series 4-0
Last Playoff Meeting: 1976 Western Conference First Round (Detroit won 2-1)
Eastern Conference Finals
(1) Detroit Pistons vs. (6) Chicago Bulls: Pistons win series 4-2
Last Playoff Meeting: 1988 Eastern Conference Semifinals (Detroit won 4-1)
NBA Finals
The Pistons' overpowering play allowed them to sweep the Lakers, who struggled to fill the defensive void left by Byron Scott's injury prior to the start of the Finals. Joe Dumars was named Finals MVP. In addition, Magic Johnson pulled a hamstring early in the second game, and unable to play the rest of the series. The Lakers depleted backcourt allowed the Pistons to easily win the 1988-89 NBA Championship.
Pistons win series 4-0