DAD’S DAY : A New Father, Isiah Thomas Keeps Things Going His Way With the Pistons

Isiah Thomas was nearly delirious when he arrived at the Silverdome for Game 5 of the National Basketball Assn. Finals against the Lakers Thursday night.

His wife, Lynn, had given birth to their first child, Joshua Isiah, Wednesday night at 7, and Thomas had been up for more than 24 hours.

Thomas, the Pistons’ All-Star point guard, collapsed on a table in the training room as Mike Abdenour, the team’s trainer, gently massaged his aching back, which he had bruised in the fourth quarter of Game 3 Sunday during a tangle with Mychal Thompson while trying to block Thompson’s shot.

Thomas probably slept like a baby Thursday night after the Pistons beat the Lakers, 104-94, to move within one victory of the National Basketball Assn. title.

“It’s been a difficult week, but nobody ever said winning an NBA championship would be easy,” said Thomas, who had 15 points, 8 assists and 5 rebounds. “I was prepared to do everything I needed to do to win (the game).

“I’m going to sleep real good tonight. We’re only one win away from winning it, but it’s like we’re still miles and miles away. You can feel it, but it’s so elusive.”

Asked to comment about his baby, Thomas responded testily: “Don’t take this personally, but it’s mine. It has nothing to do with you.”

Said teammate John Salley: “Isiah has a lot to deal with. He has to run the team, his back is hurting and his wife is in the hospital. But Isiah is a great player. Everything is in a category. He knows how to separate things when he steps on the court.”

Thomas and the Pistons, who trailed, 15-2, early in the first quarter, recovered from the miserable start to take a 3-2 series lead.

Coach Chuck Daly called time out with 7:35 remaining in the first quarter and moved Thomas from point guard to shooting guard and switched Joe Dumars from shooting guard to point guard.

The move seemed to pay off as the Pistons outscored the Lakers, 15-2.

“I was concerned about Isiah because he hurt his back early in the game when he took a spill in the first quarter,” Daly said. “He was looking hurt. I knew Joe (Dumars) was going to have to play a lot of hard minutes. Joe not only played hard minutes defensively, he hit some big, big shots.”

Dumars, who had struggled in the series, had his best game, scoring 19 points.

“When we were down 15-2, Chuck told us to calm down,” Dumars said. “We were down, but we weren’t depressed. We hadn’t gotten a whole lot of shots.

“Sometimes, when a team gets on a run like that, you feel down. But we knew that once we got the shots we wanted, we’d be OK. They were hyped and we were hyped. We were just making mistakes early.”

Guard Vinnie Johnson, who had also been in a slump, came through as the Pistons’ backcourt outscored the Laker guards, 50-32.

Johnson came off the bench to score 16 points, hitting 8 of 16 shots in 24 minutes.

Piston forward Adrian Dantley, Detroit’s leading scorer, had 25 points, hitting 7 of 10 shots and 11 of 13 free throws.

“They just came out and jumped on us,” Dantley said. “It looked like we weren’t ready. But we were just patient and we got back into the game when they got into foul trouble.

“At the beginning of the game, they were coming at me, and then all of a sudden, I got loose a little bit. I would drive to the baseline and I’d hear (Laker Coach) Pat Riley telling them to force me to the middle.”

James Edwards, a former Laker backup center, also played well. He had 10 points, outscoring Piston starting center Bill Laimbeer, who had 8.

“When we were down, 15-2, Vinnie came in and gave us a lift, and then I came in, in the second quarter, and gave us a boost,” Edwards said. “When you’re down like that, you want to come into the game. Anybody does.”