4 Ingredients to building a great Detroit Pistons team
Whether the NBA accepts it or not, the Detroit Pistons are one of the most important franchises in NBA history.
Despite their recent struggles, the Pistons are three-time NBA Champions, were heavyweights in the 1980s and 2000s, and housed some of the best and toughest players in the league. Because of this, fans of the organization hold players to a high standard or a mid-market team. It's been 20 years since the Pistons' last title, and fans are growing impatient as they wait for the team to return to prominence, but there is a blueprint for building a great Detroit team.
Make no mistake, the Pistons have a mold because they are not a major market team. They don't have the consistency and brand like the Cetlics, the lights and glamor of the Lakers, or even the location and gravity of the Warriors, so their team building has stayed consistent around a team basketball archetype that has a theme and roles in place. Whether it's the 1980's "Bad Boys" or the 2000s "Goin' to Work" teams, these are What historically great Detroit Pistons teams are built around.
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1. Hard Work
Detroit, as a whole, is a blue collar city and the best Detroit teams, regardless of the sport, are built around hard work. Whether it's diving for loose balls, running the floor, playing physical, every championship team in Detroit wear rolled up sleeves and elbow grease. Starting from coaching and working down to the players, there are no short cuts and no plays taken off.
With the "Bad Boys", nobody was allowed to stop. They knew they didnt have the referee's grace or the face of the league, so they had to outplay every team they beat from the pace and style they dictated. Even in losses, the "Bad Boys" were never out worked or out muscled. The "Goin to Work" team were mostly rejects from other teams and knew they had to fit certain roles and plays in order to win. They came to Detroit and earned their place as some of the best players in the league. Neither team could afford to give 90 percent, and the effort showed as they became NBA champions.