2004 NBA Finals

2004 NBA finals

Team Coach Wins Detroit Pistons Larry Brown 4 Los Angeles Lakers Phil Jackson 1
Dates	June 6–15
MVP	Chauncey Billups (Detroit Pistons)
Hall of Famers	Pistons: Chauncey Billups (2024) Ben Wallace (2021) Lakers: Kobe Bryant (2020) Karl Malone (2010) Shaquille O'Neal (2016) Gary Payton (2013) Coaches: Larry Brown (2002) Phil Jackson (2007) Tex Winter (2011) Officials: Dick Bavetta (2015)
Eastern finals	Pistons defeated Pacers, 4–2
Western finals	Lakers defeated Timberwolves, 4–2
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The 2004 NBA Finals was the championship round of the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2003–04 season, and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. This season's NBA Finals was contested between the Western Conference playoff champion Los Angeles Lakers and the Eastern Conference playoff champion Detroit Pistons. The Lakers held home court advantage, and the series was played under a best-of-seven format.

Although the Lakers, headed by Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal, were considered the heavy favorites,^[1] the underdog Pistons handily won the series in five games. The series is commonly referred to as a "five-game sweep" because Detroit dominated in each of their four wins while the Lakers barely managed to win Game 2 in overtime. This marked the Pistons' fifth championship victory overall as a franchise (including two NBL championships in 1944 and 1945 as the Fort Wayne Pistons), and their first since their back-to-back championships in 1989 and 1990. The series ultimately featured the perceived underdog Pistons^[1] dominating a Lakers team that included of four future Hall of Famers. Pistons owner William Davidson became the first owner in American sports history to win two championships in one calendar year; eight days earlier, his Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Calgary Flames to win the NHL's Stanley Cup Finals in seven games.