The source of jordan's hatred with his lifelong enemy Thomas is undoubtedly the pistons who have been eliminated by the Pistons in the playoffs for three consecutive years. In the 1988, 1989 and 1990 playoffs, Jordan's Bulls fell at the feet of the Pistons for three consecutive years, which was closely related to the "Jordan Law" defense set up by the Pistons Bad Boys, and every time Jordan faced the Pistons in those years, it was a kind of physical torture, and the Pistons players had all kinds of malicious fouls, especially Thomas's throat locking, stepping feet, and pushing waists.
Fast forward to the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, when the United States was forming the first basketball team made up of NBA players, and all the stars at the time thought it was an honor to be selected for the Dream Team, so they were eager to try. And Jordan used his influence to put pressure on the men's basketball team, saying that "the dream team has Thomas without me, and there is me without him!" So, in the end, the Dream Team chose Stockton to replace Thomas! It can be seen how deep Jordan's hatred for the Bad Boy Army is!
The 1979–1980 Pistons recorded 16 wins and 66 losses, the worst record in the team's history at the time, and no one wanted to come to Detroit to play. The Pistons owner was furious and decided to rebuild the team, so he hired Jack McLoughski, who had never been general manager at the time. So it was the first-time general manager McIlowski who began one of the most alternative and successful rebuilds in NBA history.
In the 1981 draft, the Pistons selected Indiana University's second-year student Isaiah Thomas, a second-year student who did not want to go to the Detroit Pistons, he wanted to go to the Bulls to play for his hometown of Chicago. In order to achieve his goal, Thomas did not hesitate to reduce his draft pick, and when he interviewed Pistons general manager McClowski before the draft, Thomas deliberately answered not so-called, answering every question wrongly, but his trick was seen through by the brilliant McClowski, who said to Thomas: "If we choose the top spot, you have not been picked, I will fix you." Thomas was speechless, leaving the Pistons general manager with a long list of ellipses!
Thomas of the Piston period
Jordan vs Thomas
Thomas played against the Bucks in the 1981-1982 Pistons opener, isaiah Thomas scored 31 points and 11 assists on his debut, and the Pistons won over the Bucks. In the second game he scored another 28 points, the Pistons won the Bulls again, and more importantly, Isaiah Thomas became the leader of the dressing room in his rookie season, and once someone played negatively, Thomas would scold all the stink, so no one dared not try to play hard!
The second of McClowski's eye is the Cavaliers' big white interior player, Bill Lambier!
"I was watching a game in Cleveland and I kept an eye on the big guy named Lambier. They were more than twenty points behind, and he had been fighting on the court. I said to myself, no matter what, I must get this guy. McCloskey, who came from the military, had a great appreciation for Lambier.
Bill Lambir
Jordan vs Lambier
When Lambier came to the Pistons, it was as if he and Isaiah had a heart in their hearts. They are all players with very high ball quotients and the way they approach the game is consistent. What's more, they're the kind of players who can stop at nothing to win, and are almost obsessed with winning. So black and white, one tall and one short, the two spiritual leaders of the Pistons came together and began a legendary and controversial NBA journey for the Pistons!
In the summer of 1985, the Pistons traded Rick Mahone from Washington, then known as the Bullets, and Mahon was huge and unruly, and no one looked good. Since Mahone wasn't happy with being traded to the Pistons, he didn't train systematically for a single offseason, and by the time he came to the Pistons to report before the start of the season, they saw a fat guy sitting languidly on the bench at the training ground, and Lambier came over and said to him bluntly, "Everybody who comes to us has to do things according to the rules, your job is to rebound and defend, and you can't do this to us." Mahon sat in his chair and glanced at Lambier and said, "How old are you?" ”
Rick Mahon
That same summer, the Pistons were accompanied by a short guard, a quietly somewhat thick-looking short guard who would be one of the most successful of the many so-called "Jordan Terminators" in history, at least as it seemed. And this solid, physically strong rookie defender is Joe Dumas.
But the Pistons weren't enough, and the lineup wasn't enough to get them out of the first round in the East.
In the summer of 1986, the Pistons traded Adrian Dantley. "Microwave Oven" Vinnie Johnson is also playing the best performance of his career, not only extremely efficient, but also playing an increasingly important role in critical times.
Winnie Johnson
This year, the Pistons also selected Dennis Rodman, John Sully with 27 picks, and their speed and enthusiasm injected new vitality into the Pistons. Rodman, in particular, never seemed to know what it was like to be tired.
The 1986–1987 Pistons had one of the best backcourt combinations of all time, with a strong scoring line, a strong and dynamic interior line and efficient benches. However, this is a group of players with different personalities, who come from different places and have different life experiences. Therefore, they are also jealous and suspicious of their teammates and environment around them. But such a group of seemingly unrelated players with very different personalities have one thing in common, that is, they have been interpreting their desire to win in different ways, and in order to win, they can do whatever it takes. It is precisely this that is extremely despised by the rest of the players in the league, but in that era of victory and physical confrontation, the Bad Boy Army is the player who wins the game in the way that is closest to the bottom line of the rules! This is undoubtedly the most practical and effective way to play!
It's just that no one tells them that, and they don't realize that their teammates are trustworthy. It was also at this time that the Pistons' meritorious coach Chuck Daly began to show his talent and talent for coaching players of different personalities and bringing their strength together.
Chuck said that year, "This league belongs to the players, and it's up to the players to decide if you're qualified to coach them." Once they disobey you, it means it's time for you to leave. To this day, this phrase is still regarded as the most reasonable saying in basketball. One of the things chuck always hangs on his lips is,
"I'm a supporting role for everyone, and it's a great honor to be standing here and coaching you."
Pistons Meritorious Coach Chuck Daley
Chuck Daly is good at reading people's hearts and is always able to think from the other person's point of view.
In this way, the Pistons' "bad boy army" was assembled, and since then, there has been a "countercurrent of history" in the NBA arena, they have no superstars, but they have killed everywhere, and even they have made the superstars dim on the field! They dragged Jordan's champion into the nineties, they were "Smiling Assassin" Isaiah Thomas, "Flower Bug" Rodman, "Thug" Rick Mahon, "Microwave" Winnie Johnson, "Bad Guy" Bill Lambier! Wait, the "bad boy army" led by them has always been a mountain that Jordan cannot cross on the road to the championship, and the Bulls have repeatedly lost to the Pistons in the playoffs. It wasn't until the '90s, when "Microwave" Winnie Johnson and "Thug" Rick Mahone left and the Pistons' "Bad Boy Army" disbanded, that Jordan began his legendary path to godhood!