Game 1 Just before Game 1, Lakers guard
Byron Scott suffered a severe hamstring injury in practice; he would miss the series. His absence would especially be felt on the defensive end.
Magic Johnson had a size advantage, but was too slow to defend against the Pistons' three-headed backcourt monster of
Joe Dumars,
Isiah Thomas, and
Vinnie Johnson. Super-sub
Michael Cooper would have to log more minutes than he was accustomed to, and rookie
David Rivers was inexperienced. Another option was
Tony Campbell, but he played very little during the season. Without Scott's quick switches and help defense, the Piston guards smoked the Lakers in Game 1. Thomas had 24 points, Dumars 22, and Johnson 19. With six minutes left, Detroit led 97–79, and the final score was 109–97.
Game 2 The short-handed Lakers snapped right back in Game 2, pounding the boards and taking a strong first-quarter lead.
Joe Dumars had a hot first half with 24 points (he would finish with 33) to keep Detroit close. Los Angeles held a 62–56 lead at halftime. With about four minutes left in the third period, a major misfortune would befall the Lakers, leading 75–73.
John Salley blocked a
Mychal Thompson shot, which started a Detroit fast break.
Magic Johnson dropped back to play defense, and in so doing, pulled his hamstring. Magic was visibly hurt and frustrated, and had to be coaxed into leaving the floor.
Dick Stockton, commentating for
CBS, said, "I've never seen him (Magic) look like that", referring to Magic's look of intense pain combined with resignation. The Pistons had made the bucket on the break to tie the game at 75–75, but the Lakers, minus Johnson, charged to a 90–81 lead late in the period. In the fourth, however, the Lakers missed three easy baskets and committed an offensive foul as Detroit first tied the game, then went up 102–95. The gritty Lakers charged back and cut the lead to 106–104. The Pistons committed a 24-second violation, giving the Lakers the ball with eight seconds left.
James Worthy drove to the basket and was fouled, giving him an opportunity to tie the game. But the 1988 Finals MVP missed the first free throw. He made the second, bringing the Lakers within one, 106–105.
Isiah Thomas then hit two free throws with one second remaining to give the Pistons a three-point lead and the Lakers, who called timeout to advance the ball to midcourt, one last chance to force overtime, but
Jeff Lamp lost the ball on the inbound pass, and the horn sounded, ending Game 2 with the Pistons winning, 108–105, to take a 2–0 series lead.
Game 3 The Pistons had a 2–0 series lead, but knew it would be tough going in L.A.
Magic Johnson tried to play, but the pain of his hamstring injury was just too great. He left Game 3 after just five minutes with the Lakers leading, 11–8. Without Magic, the Lakers made a heroic effort.
James Worthy scored 26 points, and the 42-year-old
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar found the fountain of youth, contributing 24 points and 13 rebounds.
Michael Cooper, the last remaining backcourt veteran, had 13 assists and 15 points. But it wasn't enough.
Dennis Rodman, despite suffering from painful back spasms, pulled down 19 rebounds between trips to the sideline for rubdowns. But the main effort came from the guards.
Joe Dumars scored 31, including a remarkable third quarter in which he scored 17 consecutive points (21 in all for the period).
Vinnie Johnson added 17, including 13 points in the fourth.
Isiah Thomas pitched in with 26 points and eight assists, including six and three in the final period. The Pistons led 113–108 with 15 seconds left when Thomas allowed
A.C. Green to tie him up and steal the ball. Thomas then fouled Lakers rookie point guard
David Rivers, who made both free throws, pulling Los Angeles to within three at 113–110 with 13 seconds left. Dumars then lost the ball out of bounds with nine seconds left, giving the Lakers a shot at the tie. The Lakers then ran a play where Rivers got free for an open three-pointer in the corner. Dumars lunged and blocked the shot, and saved the ball from going out of bounds. The Pistons then ran out the clock after
Bill Laimbeer's free throw to close the game with a 114–110 win, putting them on the verge of an unexpected sweep.
Game 4 With the Lakers' backs to the wall, coach
Pat Riley admonished key offensive player
James Worthy to step up his game. Worthy responded with a championship effort of 40 points on 17-of-26 field-goal shooting with
Rick Mahorn in his face every step of the way.
The Forum crowd was also anticipating
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's possible curtain call. During the pregame warmups and introductions, Kareem received several ovations. With Worthy playing out of his mind, the Lakers took a 35–23 lead at the end of the first period. Despite trouble at the free-throw line (11 missed), the Pistons began to claw back as Los Angeles led 55–49 at intermission. The Pistons started fast in the third quarter, beginning with a three-point basket by
Bill Laimbeer. Mahorn then scored four quick points, and the Pistons took a 59–58 lead moments later. Dumars hit a driving bank shot, drew the foul and made the free throw, giving him 19 points on the evening. Mahorn followed that with another bucket and the Lakers called timeout. Worthy led the Lakers back into a 78–76 lead at the end of the third, but they knew the Pistons were coming on. The Pistons took control of the game in the fourth, with
James Edwards scoring particularly well. With 3:23 left and the Pistons leading 100–94, the crowd rose to a standing ovation as
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar left the game. For the next two minutes, it seemed nobody wanted to hit a shot. Abdul-Jabbar reentered the game and spun and hit a bank shot with 1:37 left, his last two NBA points, cutting the Pistons' margin to 100–96. Kareem went out of the game with 47 seconds remaining amid thunderous applause. Laimbeer hit a jumper at the 28-second mark, and the Pistons began celebrating. Riley sent Abdul-Jabbar back in after the timeout, but
Michael Cooper missed a three-pointer and
Isiah Thomas was fouled. Riley then sent
Orlando Woolridge in for Abdul-Jabbar, this time for good, prompting a standing ovation from the crowd and acknowledgment from the players on both the Lakers and, in a rare show of sportsmanship, the Pistons. Thomas then hit the foul shots, closing out the 105–97 win and the championship. With Magic Johnson and Byron Scott sidelined by injuries, the Lakers were unable to contain the Pistons, who completed the sweep with a 105–97 win. Dumars was named Finals MVP after averaging 27.3 points per game during the series. The Pistons won the series 4–0, capturing their first NBA championship. This was the first NBA Finals that ended in a four-game sweep since the Finals went to the 2–3–2 format in 1985. ==Team rosters==