Isiah Thomas Laments the Pistons’ ‘Dramatic’ Fall

The Detroit Pistons were one of the most feared franchises in the late 80s and even in the early 2000s. The ‘Bad Boy Pistons’ led by Isiah Thomas won multiple NBA championships, defeating teams like Larry Bird’s Boston Celtics, Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls and Magic and Kareem’s Showtime Lakers on the way. But the franchise has undergone an epic fall in the past few years.

Thomas couldn’t help but express his disappointment after witnessing the travesty of last season. During an exclusive sit-down with MichiganLive, the Pistons legend couldn’t even feign a positive outlook when talking about his former franchise.

He outlined the Pistons’ rich history that has always bestowed high standards on the franchise,

“When I talk about the Detroit Pistons, I always talk about the Pistons having very high standards. At one point in time, our goal was to be talked about in the same breath as the Celtics and the Lakers.”

 

However, the Pistons recorded the longest losing streak in NBA history last season, finishing with a pitiful 14-68 record.

So, when asked about the current state and condition of the team, IT spoke with a heavy heart.

“Clearly, over the last 10 years or so, we’ve fallen dramatically. When you look at the Pistons right now, their identity in terms of who you would say is a Piston, they’ve lost that, and they have to get that back.”

Isiah dedicated his entire career to the Pistons, having played all 13 years of his NBA career for the team. He took Detroit to three NBA Finals and ended up winning the first two titles of the franchise’s history.

Now it is safe to assume that Isiah does not expect the team to go back to its past glory immediately. But the franchise has to set up a process for the team to get back on track. They already have a bright young talent in Cade Cunningham. 

The front-office will now look to bring in more suitable pieces around him and draft talented youngsters.