1990 Detroit Pistons

Detroit's defense was the story of the regular season. The Pistons gave up just 98.3 points a game, fewest in the league, on the way to 59 wins. The Bad Boys identity was now a marketing slogan and a style: hard fouls, dead-ball confrontations, and the Jordan Rules designed to wall off Chicago's young star.

The path to the Finals ran through the Bulls again. Detroit beat them 4-3 in the Eastern Conference finals, the last time the Pistons would turn Jordan away. Thomas carried the offense, Laimbeer and Salley held the middle, and James Edwards gave Daly scoring at center off the bench.

In the Finals, Portland tied the series with an overtime win in Game 2, but Detroit took the next three. Thomas was everywhere, making 11 of 16 from three-point range and averaging 27.6 points. Game 5 in Portland ended on Vinnie Johnson's shot with 0.7 seconds left, a 92-90 win that finished the sweep of the road games.

It was the franchise's second straight title. The Pistons would not return to the Finals until 2004. By then every starter from the Bad Boys era was gone, but the blueprint of winning with defense had outlived them.

The starting five was Isiah Thomas, Joe Dumars, Mark Aguirre, Dennis Rodman, and Bill Laimbeer. Chuck Daly coached the group with Vinnie Johnson as the primary bench scorer.

This was title number 2 in a Detroit Pistons run that stretched across consecutive or near-consecutive seasons. Repeat winners carried continuity from one year to the next.

By 1990 the NBA had expanded nationwide and the Finals were a national television event. The Detroit Pistons title run still required winning the East or West bracket, then taking the championship round.

The Detroit Pistons share a lineage with other banners from 1989, 2004. Compare those seasons on the franchise hub to see how the roster and style changed between title runs.

Looking back, the Pistons repeated in 1990, winning 59 games and beating the Portland Trail Blazers in five. Isiah Thomas took Finals MVP, scoring 33, 23, 21, 32, and 29 across the series. Vinnie Johnson, nicknamed the Microwave, ended it with a jumper that left 0.7 seconds on the clock.

For the full roster beyond the featured starters, see the table on this page. For other Detroit Pistons titles, use the franchise hub linked below.