A Bit of Detroit Pistons History: You could say that the Detroit Pistons 1989 NBA Championship run began on Tuesday, June 9, 1981. It was on that day that “Trader” Jack McCloskey made Isiah Thomas, fresh off an NCAA Championship with Indiana, the second pick in the NBA Draft. Later that season, the Pistons would add Vinnie Johnson and Bill Laimbeer and over the next several years, the club would add Head Coach Chuck Daly, Joe Dumars, Dennis Rodman, James Edwards, Rick Mahorn, and John Salley. This combination of guys would become one of the most feared basketball teams in NBA history. Unlike any teams before, it wasn’t the offensive punch that rattled most teams, but the actual physical punch that opponents feared. These men rode their defensive intensity and physicality all the way to the 1989 Larry O’Brien Trophy. They would forever be known as…the Bad Boys. (source: NBA.com)