1987–88 Detroit Pistons season
The 1987–88 NBA season was the Detroit Pistons' 40th season in the NBA and 31st season in the city of Detroit. The team played at the Pontiac Silverdome in suburban Pontiac, Michigan.
| 1987–88 Detroit Pistons season | |
|---|---|
Conference champions | |
Division champions | |
| Head coach | Chuck Daly |
| General manager | Jack McCloskey |
| Owner(s) | William Davidson |
| Arena | Pontiac Silverdome |
| Results | |
| Record | 54–28 (.659) |
| Place | Division: 1st (Central) Conference: 2nd (Eastern) |
| Playoff finish | NBA Finals (lost to Lakers 3–4) |
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
| Local media | |
| Television | PASS Sports (Fred McLeod, Tom Wilson) WKBD (George Blaha, Hubie Brown, Greg Kelser, Dick Motta) |
| Radio | WWJ–AM (George Blaha, Hubie Brown, Greg Kelser, Dick Motta) |
The Pistons finishing with a then franchise-best record of 54–28 (.659), 1st place in the NBA Central Division. the first division championship for the franchise since moving to Detroit in 1957. In the 1988 NBA Playoffs, they defeated the Washington Bullets 3–2 in the first round, Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls 4–1 in the semifinals, and then Larry Bird and the top-seeded Boston Celtics 4–2 in the conference finals. They would advance to the NBA Finals for the first time since 1956 when the team was based in Fort Wayne, only to lose to the defending and eventual NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers in a hard-fought 7-game series.
Game 6 saw a remarkable performance, as Pistons star Isiah Thomas went down with a gruesome ankle injury. On the sidelines, camera shots displayed the critical condition of Thomas's foot, as he could barely fit his shoe back on, but Thomas insisted on playing. Hobbling badly for the rest of the game, the Pistons guard put on a show, scoring 25 points in the third quarter, and 43 points in the game.
In the closing seconds, with the Pistons ahead, there was a controversial call on Pistons center Bill Laimbeer. Lakers center Kareem Abdul-Jabbar feinted over his right shoulder to the middle, then pivoted to his left for his classic sky hook along the baseline. Laimbeer raised his hands straight above his head to show he wasn't fouling and yet was called for what Laker coach Pat Riley would call a "phantom foul". The Pistons lost 103–102 as Abdul-Jabbar made both free throws, and then, with a very limited Thomas for game 7, the Lakers took the title with a 108–105 victory in Los Angeles. Pistons owner Bill Davidson said, "Well, the worst loss was out in LA when I was in the room with David Stern getting ready to accept the trophy, and they call a foul on Bill Laimbeer against Kareem. Bill pulled down a clean rebound, and Hugh Evans calls a foul. You know that he was set up, and you know … I don't say he had a bet on the game, but that was … that was unconscionable! And that cost us a championship, which we should have had. Which we had."
Detroit was led on the season by Thomas (19.5 ppg, 8.4 apg, NBA All-Star), forward Adrian Dantley (20.0 ppg), and guard Joe Dumars (14.2 ppg). As the season came to a close, Game 5 of Finals was the franchise's last game at the Pontiac Silverdome, as they would move to another Detroit-area suburban arena, the purpose-built Palace of Auburn Hills, the following season.