the Pistons and Trail Blazers split the first two games in Detroit before the Pistons swept the middle three in Portland, where they hadn't won in 17 years. They clinched the championship when Vinnie Johnson made a memorable 14-foot jumper with 0.07 seconds left on the clock in Game 5.

"Detroit's win over the Blazers in the Finals was almost an afterthought after their seven-game series against Chicago in the Eastern Conference finals," Hollinger wrote. "Chicago won 55 games that year and was steadily gaining steam. While the series was close, the individual games mostly were not; Detroit's final two wins were by 19 and 18 points to keep the Bulls at bay for another year."

The Pistons' 2004 championship run was ranked No. 26.

That year, Detroit beat Milwaukee infive games, New Jersey in seven and Indiana in six before nearly sweeping the Lakers, who lost in five thanks only to Kobe Bryant's 3-pointer with 2.1 seconds left in regulation that forced overtime in Game 2.

The Lakers won 99-91 as Bryant was sensational with 36 points.

"The Pistons gained steam as the playoffs went on," Hollinger wrote. "They dropped Game 2 at home to a middling Milwaukee team in the first round before rallying with three straight double-digit wins, and they had the fourth lowest second-round score on this list for the New Jersey series – one which they won with the help of a series of Ben Wallace face-up jump shots in Game 7. (Yes, really.)

"With Detroit's swarming defense ... the Pistons blitzed the Lakers by a