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Isiah Thomas would have welcomed Kevin Durant to the Pistons

By Duncan Smith

Oct 5, 2014; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Isiah Thomas a NBA Hall of Famer watches as the Toronto Raptors host the Sacramento Kings during the first half at Rogers Arena. The Toronto Raptors won 99-94. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 5, 2014; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Isiah Thomas a NBA Hall of Famer watches as the Toronto Raptors host the Sacramento Kings during the first half at Rogers Arena. The Toronto Raptors won 99-94. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports /
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With all the hate being aimed at NBA super-teams, Pistons’ Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas has said that he would have welcomed Kevin Durant to the Bad Boys.

The Detroit Pistons of the late 1980’s and early 1990’s weren’t a super-team by most modern measures. They didn’t have two top-five players or three (or four) top-10 players like the juggernauts that the Miami Heat of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh were or the Golden State Warriors of Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson.

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Make no mistake, those Bad Boys’ Piston teams were a dynasty by any definition, winning back-to-back championships in 1989 and 1990, but they didn’t have a corner on the talent market the way these recent teams have. Perhaps they were just one more superstar away from being a transcendent dynasty, though.

Piston legend and Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas weighed in on the topic of super-teams in an interview with Mike Wise of The Undefeated. In a thoughtful piece focusing on the flip from “the Rebellion” to the Evil Empire that the Warriors have evolved towards through their ascent from fun upstart team to potentially the greatest team to ever play in the NBA–even BEFORE swiping away the darling of America’s heartland itself, Kevin Durant–Wise spoke with both Thomas and former Piston Caron Butler.

Thomas and Butler both had takes that contrasted Wise’s tone.

In Thomas’ own words:

"“To have the opportunity to potentially see a team like this play in the NBA — this type of talent, this type of firepower — I think it’s going to be truly exciting. They’re definitely going to be must-see TV,” Thomas said. “I believe in dominance. A team like this can make the game better if it makes everyone else reach for another level of excellence.“I never would have left Detroit, but if Larry Bird or Michael Jordan would have came to the Pistons, I would have welcomed them with open arms. Let’s be real. At the end of the day, when you’re trying to win the championship, you’re trying to make the opponent weaker.”"

Thomas makes a good point in that not only does this move assert dominance, it will push the rest of the league to try to catch up. The Oklahoma City Thunder and Cleveland Cavaliers have both challenged the Warriors in the past two postseasons by sizing up and trying to overwhelm the speed and skill by simple being too big for the Dubs.

While small-ball may be the new wave of the NBA, the Thunder and Cavs proved that being huge and getting all the rebounds might be just enough to beat a more skilled, efficient and quicker opponent.

The competitive balance in the NBA has certainly been upset, as the only conceivable challenge to the Warriors in the Western Conference has become injury and serious misfortune, but this shift of power has ensured that the league will evolve and grow schematically at an ever faster rate.

We all know the Warriors are better than everybody. The only way for the rest of the league to keep up is adapt strategically, or be left behind in the wake of scorched earth that is sure to follow Golden State in this new era of Kevin Durant and Steph Curry’s union.

Butler echoed Thomas’ sentiments:

"“I’m happy for him. I think he made a basketball decision. It’s a great opportunity to win now and win quite often for the next few years. For him now it’s all about legacy, titles. He’s done everything else.“It reshaped the whole league, you know what I’m saying? This is a force to be reckoned with. How can you not like watching that team?”"

It’s rare when a business decision made by one individual has the ability to throw an entire industry in such disarray, but there’s no question that Durant made the decision that he felt suited his professional interests best.

Next: Will the Detroit Pistons have a title window?

Not everybody likes dominance or seeing greatness rewarded, and it’s becoming more and more clear that many people hate the concept of super-teams, but we’re about to get to see perhaps the most super team of all hit the floor in November.

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