DETROIT – The term “new era” is starting to getting old for the Detroit Pistons, now on their third head coach in three years.
It’s a franchise looking for consistency, something they believe they’ve found in J.B. Bickerstaff.
“It’s something I’m excited to be a part of,” Bickerstaff told Local 4. “You don’t get these opportunities often to be a part of something that’s building from the ground up.”
Bickerstaff brings experience to Detroit. Including interim roles, this will be his fourth head coaching opportunity in the NBA. That attribute is something that drew the Pistons to his leadership.
“There are a lot of different characteristics that we looked at in the new coach that we wanted to hire, and that was probably about 15 things,” Pistons President Trajan Langdon said. “Experience definitely is one of them. You want somebody to come in and hit the ground running.”
Bickerstaff’s last team in Cleveland built itself on a defensive mentality, and that’s the plan here in Detroit. The Cavaliers finished seventh in scoring defense last year, while holding opponents to 46.3% shooting (sixth in the NBA).
Selling this young roster on that aspect of the game is Bickerstaff’s priority.
“It’s just a matter if you want to win or not,” Bickerstaff said of teams with a defensive mindset.
“Offense is what it is. They don’t put stops in the paper, they put buckets in the paper. You look at the teams with the most success that played the longest this year, those teams were really good defensively.”
Like Langdon mentioned in his introductory press conference, Bickerstaff did not put a timeline on getting this team back to their winning ways after a 14-win season.
Instead, he wants to see a gradual progression from a young team surrounded by veteran additions in the offseason.
“Every situation is different, our aim is to get better as the season goes on,” Bickerstaff said. “Wins and losses are something that come on their own timeline.”
Bottom line: The Pistons hired a guy who genuinely seems to want to be here. Bickerstaff did not have to jump back into head coaching after being let go in Cleveland, but here he is, ready to lead this team into the future with a brand of basketball that Detroit can be proud of once again.
“It’s not going to be easy, but nothing good ever comes easy,” Bickerstaff said. “You want to be around people who are willing to go through the grind and all of the ugly stuff, so at the end of the day, you can enjoy the success that’s come from it.”