My first Detroit Pistons playoff game was 40 years ago, in the Omni Coliseum in Atlanta, which, a decade later, during the Summer Olympics, would see a bomb explode in the park next to it.That playoff night, the Pistons sported Joe Dumars, Bill Laimbeer, Rick Mahorn, Isiah Thomas and Kelly Tripucka — and got trashed by a Hawks team that featured Dominique Wilkins, aka the Human Highlight Film, and Spud Webb, a guard who, by NBA standards, could fit in your pocket.The Pistons lost that game, 140-122. They would lose Game 2 as well, then win Game 3 back home at the Pontiac Silverdome, before dropping Game 4 in double overtime by a single point.Taken on its own, you’d not call that a successful postseason.

Eliminated in the first round. Defeated in the closing seconds. Didn’t even get to a decisive Game 5.But the next year, those same Pistons returned with their lineup largely intact (save for Adrian Dantley replacing the traded Tripucka) and, having grown from their defeat, they went all the way to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals before losing to (ugh) the Boston Celtics.Now here we are again, 40 years later, on the lip of another Pistons postseason that begins Sunday, April 19.

The Silverdome has been demolished. The Omni has been demolished. Dumars, Thomas and the rest are long since retired. Chuck Daly, the old coach, and Jack McCloskey, the old GM, have both passed away.But this year’s Pistons have something big in common with their 40-years-ago version.There’s a springboard beneath their feet.And it could see them soar.Growing pains in the playoffsThe NBA is, traditionally, a league where you claw your way up in playoff experience.

Young teams can make an early splash, but usually get pushed off the ladder by a team that’s done it before. Then they come back more determined the next year, go further, maybe even a conference finals or an NBA Finals, but often slip trying to get over the hump. The next time out, anything goes.The Pistons, in the old days, took this roadmap to an NBA title.

The Chicago Bulls were next. Then the San Antonio Spurs followed suit. The reason it takes time to win a crown in this league is that losing builds character, character builds identity, and identity gets you over the top.

Show me an NBA champion, and I’ll show you a team that has figured out who it is, what it does well, who is expected to do what, and who doesn’t care if they don’t get the ball (or the glory).The Pistons' "Bad Boys" champions of 1989 and 1990 had an identity: They saw themselves as hard-nosed, physical defenders, with scoring punch from one of the best backcourts ever.The Pistons' "Goin’ To Work" group that won it all in 2004 was equally blue-collared, with a chip on their shoulders from being cast off from previous teams. Their lack of a single superstar, in an era of teams with double superstars, became a winning ensemble formula.Which brings us to these 2026 Pistons, who have forged an identity of their own, much of it through defeat.

Last week, I asked coach J.B. Bickerstaff if losing in the first round to New York last year is motivation for this year’s run.“I do think (that series) taught us some lessons,” he said. “It was unfortunate the way it ended for us, but ultimately it helped us get to where we are now.”Where they are now is the No. 1 seed in the East, a 60-win season, and homecourt advantage all the way until the finals.

But regular-season excellence is useless if you don’t have the right postseason mentality. And this is where the Pistons, defeated in six tough games by the Knicks in the previous playoffs, may have their greatest edge.They thrive on turnaround.From dark times, into the lightRemember, Cade Cunningham, Jalen Duren, Isaiah Stewart and Ausar Thompson, all current starters, were also all here two years ago when the team won 14 games and had a miserable 28-game losing streak. Is it any wonder that these are the same guys who refused to take their foot off the gas this season, even when the playoffs were locked up, even when Cunningham went out for 11 games with a collapsed lung?“I do believe (what happened) two seasons ago lit a fire under these guys that they haven't forgotten,” Bickerstaff said.

“The way they felt they were treated, or talked about, the stuff that they'd gone through, how dark those days were. I believe that tied this group of guys together in a way that's unique and extremely special, and it lit a fire for them to show everyone who they really are and who they believe they can be.”Exactly. And it’s those kinds of teams that tend to go furthest in the long grind that is the NBA playoffs.

There’s a reason so many of the engineered superstar pairings in recent years never won a title (aka, wherever Kevin Durant or James Harden have gone). When the postseason slogs, you need more than stats. You need belief.

You need someone stepping up if someone else slips. And you need defense.Which perfectly describes the Pistons. They believed when others did not.