Bickerstaff Says Pistons' Season Isn't 'A Disappointment At All' Despite Loss to Cavs as No. 1 Seed
Detroit Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff didn't want to dwell too much on his top-seeded squad getting eliminated in the second round of the 2026 NBA playoffs.
"It's not a disappointment at all. And not ever will I be disappointed in these guys," he told reporters after Sunday's Game 7 loss to the Detroit Pistons. "These guys, every single day gave us what they got. So, it is not a disappointment. It's a loss and it's a tough loss, but that adjective will never be used with this group."
Fans in the Motor City probably don't fully share Bickerstaff's opinion.
In a vacuum, winning 60 games but failing to reach the conference finals isn't a terrible outcome. Years of postseason heartbreak is almost a prerequisite for any franchise that goes on to win a title.
But Detroit was blown out by 31 points at home to a Cleveland Cavaliers team that has been far from unstoppable. Star guard Cade Cunningham went 5-of-16 from the field. Forward Tobias Harris didn't connect on any of his six field-goal attempts. The Pistons also allowed Cleveland to shoot 50.6 percent from the field.
Cunningham called it a "disappointing series" while trying to focus on the bigger picture.
"Fell short of doing enough of the right things to win the series," he said. "But, we were the No. 1 seed for a reason. We won a lot of games this year. We played great basketball all year long and really established an identity and stuff that we didn't have for a long time. So, all those things are positives and things that we'll take into the offseason and come back next year and grow from."
In terms of evaluating the campaign as a whole, the matchup with the Cavs followed an opening-round battle with the No. 8 Orlando Magic in which Detroit needed to reel off three straight wins to survive.
The Pistons simply didn't play their best basketball when it mattered the most. Bickerstaff knows all too well a coach needs to start delivering in the playoffs sooner or later.
The 47-year-old received a ton of praise when the Cavs made a 22-win improvement in 2021-22. Two years later, he was out of a job after Cleveland was easily swatted aside by the Boston Celtics in the second round.
Detroit extended Bickerstaff's contract earlier this month, so he's not in any danger of getting the boot this summer.
Looking ahead to 2026-27, though, the expectations within the organization are only going to get higher. At a certain point, the Pistons will strive to be more than just a very good team in the regular season.
