The Pistons won the NBA Finals again in 1989-90. From January 23 to February 21 they ran off a 13-game winning streak, an all-time club record. They lost once, then won another 12 games for a 25-1 mark from January 23 to March 21. By then the Pistons' most evident quality was a punishing defense. For the season, they held opponents to a league-low 98.3 points per game.

Michael Jordan - led Chicago Bulls in the Eastern Conference Finals. Detroit prevailed in the seven-game series, then knocked off Portland in the 1990 NBA Finals, four games to one. Isiah Thomas was named Finals MVP.

After two seasons at the pinnacle, the 1990-91 team was still a solid unit but was beginning to unravel. Detroit's regular-season record was 50-32, but the eventual NBA-champion Bulls swept the Pistons in the conference finals. Detroit's trademark defense held opponents to a club-record 96.8 points per game.

Joe Dumars, who increased his scoring average in each of his first six years in the league, supplanted Thomas as the team's top scorer with 20.4 points per game. He also set a team record for consecutive free throws, making 62 straight during one stretch. Dennis Rodman was the NBA Defensive Player of the Year for the second consecutive season, and he joined Dumars on the league's All-Defensive Team.