Pistons’ Bickerstaff Calls Free Throw Disparity ‘Unacceptable’
The Pistons dropped a second consecutive game on Monday, falling 112-103 to the Cavaliers to tie their second-round series up at two games apiece as the Central rivals head back to Detroit. Free throw shooting was the difference in Game 4. While Detroit out-shot Cleveland from the floor and from three-point range, the Cavs went 30-of-34 from the line while the Pistons made just 9-of-12 free throws.
“It’s unacceptable. It is,” Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said of the free throw disparity, according to Daniel Oyefusi of ESPN.com. “We didn’t do enough obviously to help ourselves, and I’ll start there. But ever since we came to Cleveland, the whistle has changed. There’s no way that one guy on their team shoots more free throws than our team.”
Bickerstaff’s remark was a reference to Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell, who went to the line 15 times on his own and made 13 of those tries. The majority of those attempts came in the third and fourth quarters, as Mitchell matched a playoff record by scoring 39 second-half points after registering just four in the first half.
“We’re not a settle team,” Bickerstaff continued. “We’re not a jump shooting team. We drive the ball, attack the paint. So, what was done out there tonight, it’s frustrating, but we can’t allow that to be the reason why, because we didn’t play well enough and play to the best of our capabilities.
“But again, you look at the foul count, you look at the disparity, and that’s hard to overcome, and you wonder the reason why. It’s interesting since (Cavaliers coach) Kenny (Atkinson) made his comments publicly about us, the whistles changed in this series.”
As Oyefusi observes, through the first two games of the series, the Pistons had earned 55 free throws to 43 for Cleveland, prompting Atkinson to speak about Detroit’s physical defensive play ahead of Game 3. Atkinson said his team would have to find a way to protect the ball and gain separation from defenders if the Pistons were going to “chuck and swipe” and turn it into a “clutch and grab and hold game.”
As Shawn Windsor of The Detroit Free Press writes in a subscriber-only story, Pistons star Cade Cunningham, who attempted just three free throws, said during his post-game media session that the officiating was “not why we lost the game.” Still, Cunningham agreed with Bickerstaff that Detroit wasn’t exactly getting a friendly whistle, telling reporters that the free throw disparity “definitely doesn’t help,” per Oyefusi.
“I realized early on it was going to be one of those type of nights. I got hit on my arm early. I didn’t get a whistle,” Cunningham said. “Everybody didn’t want to look at me after that. I kind of knew what it was.”
Cavaliers Notes: Harden, Mitchell, Bickerstaff, Merrill
James Harden has tried to ignore the doubts raised by his checkered playoff history, but those concerns became louder after a pair of subpar performances in Detroit. Harden may have silenced his critics for at least a little while by hitting several clutch shots in a Game 3 victory on Saturday that kept the Cavaliers‘ playoff hopes alive, Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com writes in a subscriber-only story.
“It was the James Harden I’ve seen for how many years we’ve been in the NBA,” coach Kenny Atkinson said. “That’s the James we know. We needed it tonight. We were searching and he went to work.”
After a 16-point halftime lead slipped away, the Cavs found themselves in another clutch-time battle with the top-seeded Pistons. With less than two minutes remaining, Harden sank a step-back jumper that extended the lead to four. After a Cade Cunningham dunk, Harden responded with a floater in the lane to make it a four-point game again. Cunningham drilled a three-pointer, setting the stage for Harden’s biggest shot of the afternoon. Closely guarded by Tobias Harris, Harden maneuvered his way for a step-back shot from beyond the arc that effectively put the game out of reach.
“It’s not even about anybody else,” said Harden, who was acquired from the Clippers in February in hopes of bringing a title to Cleveland. “I’m literally here to find my spots, figure out what needs to be done and try to contribute in the best way possible. Chatter is going to be chatter regardless, whether you do something good or you do something bad. For me, you give me opportunities in this fourth quarter, and I take advantage of them. I’ve done an unbelievable job throughout the course of my career just understanding what the job needs to be, especially as I get older and doing whatever it takes to win the game. That’s the most important thing.”
There’s more from Cleveland:
- A loss on Saturday would have resulted in a 3-0 series deficit and likely set up a summer of change for the franchise. Atkinson talked about the importance of fighting through adversity in the third quarter and staying in position to pull out the victory, Fedor adds. “You know how important it is to get this first win to make it a series,” he said. “I felt like that third quarter we had great looks and the ball wasn’t falling. That’s the spirit of this team. They don’t get down. We’re not like, ‘Oh man, they came back.’ It’s like, it’s a veteran team. They kind of know that’s how this goes.”
- Donovan Mitchell‘s role in the dismissal of Detroit’s J.B. Bickerstaff as Cavaliers coach two years ago is one of the overlooked subplots of the series, contends Joe Vardon of The Athletic. Vardon reports that Mitchell was one of the first players to get frustrated by Bickerstaff’s refusal to trust his veterans and by a simplistic offensive approach that often relied on Mitchell to bail the team out. Vardon adds that Mitchell was negotiating a contract extension at the time, so he was in position to demand that Bickerstaff be retained if he had wanted to.
- Sam Merrill was back in the lineup after sitting out Game 2 with a minor left hamstring strain that he suffered early in the series opener. He played 14 minutes off the bench and finished with seven points.
Cavaliers Notes: Atkinson, Bickerstaff, Mitchell, Harden
Kenny Atkinson was named Coach of the Year last season. Could Atkinson be in danger of losing his job if the Cavaliers fail to get past the Pistons in their second-round series?
According to Brett Seigel of ClutchPoints (Twitter video link), there could be roster upheaval as well as a coaching change if that happens.
“If they kind of flame out as they have in past seasons in this second round series, there’s going to be major question marks about what the future of this roster looks like and, more importantly, what Kenny Atkinson’s future with Cavaliers looks like,” he said.
In any case, whichever coach ends up on the losing end of this series will endure a miserable summer, Jason Lloyd of The Athletic opines.
Here’s more on the Cavs:
- Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff, who was fired by Cleveland after losing in the second round two seasons ago, does not have to worry about his job security in his current NBA home, according to Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press. “We’re going to be here for a while, right?” he said. “And this group is going to be together for a while. So we have to do what’s best for this group in total and not just react to our emotions in the moment. Being here, working with (president of basketball operations) Trajan (Langdon) and (team owner) Tom (Gores), they’ve afforded me the ability to be able to do that and see the game that way, where you don’t feel like you have to win or lose every possession or your job’s on the line.”
- If the Cavs want to climb out of the 0-2 series hole, they’ll need even more from Donovan Mitchell, Lloyd writes. He struggled through the opening round series against Toronto and in Game 1 against Detroit. He produced in Game 2, getting to the paint and attacking the basket while scoring 31 points, but continued to misfire from distance.
- James Harden was acquired to put the Cavs over the top. Instead, he’s been a turnover machine, Joe Reedy of The Associated Press writes. The 17-year veteran has more turnovers than field goals in four of Cleveland’s nine playoff games, including the first two against Detroit. “You look within first. Look at my turnovers, and a lot of them are just on me,” he said. “If you get a shot on glass, even half of that, and it’s a different ball game. For me, I got to be better. I will be better (not) turning the basketball over and getting shots up. It gives our defense a chance to get back and be set.”
- How the Cavs finish this playoff run will have a significant impact on the reputations of both Harden and Mitchell, Jamal Collier of ESPN opines. Mitchell says he doesn’t feel pressure. “This isn’t pressure. Getting your next meal is pressure,” he said. “Where am I going to live? You know, that’s pressure. This is an opportunity. This is fun. At least I know we put our best foot forward regardless of the result. … In years past, some s–t just didn’t go my way. Now I’m like: We made the moves. We’ve done the talk. Now, just continue to walk the walk.”
Pistons Notes: Bickerstaff, Duren, Jenkins, Game 1
The Pistons were the worst team in the league when J.B. Bickerstaff was hired as the head coach. In just two seasons, they have become a formidable force in the East, winning 60 regular season games and finishing as the No. 1 seed in the conference.
Much of the credit for that success goes to the players, especially Cade Cunningham, who catapulted himself into MVP conversations this season, but Bickerstaff’s approach and emphasis on playing with maximum effort and tenacity have been a massive part of setting the team’s identity, Hunter Patterson writes for The Athletic.
Beyond his grit-and-grind mentality, what makes Bickerstaff special is how he approaches his relationship with the team, as Patterson relays.
“Everybody feels like they can call him to talk about if they have problems with their girlfriend or if they need something for their kids,” Cunningham said. “He’s just a very selfless and supportive person. Having somebody like that who cares about you on the court and wants you to be great on the court, but then also actually cares about your life and your well-being off the court is huge.”
Bickerstaff was previously the coach of the Cavaliers, but he’s not bringing any baggage from his dismissal to this series, Chris Fedor writes for Cleveland.com (subscriber link). However, that doesn’t mean that his added familiarity with many of the players isn’t helpful when it comes to game planning.
“I just … I spent a lot of time with those guys,” he said, smiling.
We have more Pistons notes:
- After a rough first round against the Magic, in Game 1 against the Cavaliers, Jalen Duren once again looked like the star big man he has been all season, per Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press. Whether crashing the offensive boards, making momentum-building defensive plays, or hitting timely dunks, Duren made it hard for Cleveland’s big men to get comfortable on Tuesday. He said that one thing he learned in the series against Orlando was how much he can impact a game when the offense isn’t clicking, writes Larry Lage of the Associated Press. “My value is on the defensive end,” he said. “My value is crashing the glass. It doesn’t always have to be scoring for me.”
- Daniss Jenkins‘ breakout season has carried over into the playoffs, when he’s been asked to play major minutes in high-leverage situations, including 29 minutes in Game 1 against Cleveland. He repaid that confidence by scoring six points and adding three rebounds and a steal in the final three-and-a-half minutes of the game, Lage writes. It’s the latest accomplishment in a season full of them for the former undrafted free agent, who was on a two-way contract until February. “He’s been building for it all year,” teammate Duncan Robinson said. “His journey is unique, and it takes somebody with a special will and character to have that story. He has unshakeable confidence for someone who’s been overlooked his whole career, and he just wears it as a chip.”
- Bickerstaff believes that having to win three games in a row to advance past the first round helped the Pistons learn what it takes to survive in the playoffs, ESPN’s Jamal Collier writes. “You understand how to close and how to finish. How to get to your spots,” he said. “Then you grow belief that you can. That series did a lot of that for us.”
Pistons Sign J.B. Bickerstaff To Contract Extension
The Pistons have signed head coach J.B. Bickerstaff to a contract extension, the team announced in a press release (Twitter link).
Bickerstaff has led Detroit to a remarkable turnaround over the past two seasons. After finishing with the worst record (14-68) in the NBA in 2023/24, the Pistons improved by 30 wins in Bickerstaff’s first year at the helm, going 44-38 and making the playoffs.
The Pistons continued their upward trajectory in ’25/26, finishing with a 60-22 record, the top mark in the Eastern Conference. Detroit survived a first-round scare against No. 8 Orlando, falling in a 3-1 hole before winning the final three games to advance to the second round for the first time since 2008.
Bickerstaff, 47, reportedly signed a five-year contract when he was hired in July 2024, with the first four seasons being guaranteed. It’s unclear how many extra years his extension will cover.
It’s interesting timing that the Pistons decided to extend Bickerstaff on the same day that the Magic dismissed Jamahl Mosley. Bickerstaff defended his friend and said he disagreed with the Magic’s decision in an appearance on Stephen A. Smith’s radio show, as Cody Taylor of Rookie Wire relays (via Twitter).
Bickerstaff, who took over as president of the National Basketball Coaches Association earlier this season, is a finalist for the Coach of the Year award. The other finalists are Joe Mazzulla (Celtics) and Mitch Johnson (Spurs).
After starting his NBA coaching career as an assistant, Bickerstaff has had previous head coaching stops in Memphis, Houston and Cleveland prior to joining Detroit.
The Pistons will face the Cavaliers, Bickerstaff’s former club, in the Eastern semifinals.
Cavs Notes: Allen, Harden, Mitchell, Flaws, Bickerstaff
Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen muffled some of his critics with his performance in Game 7 on Sunday. Allen erupted for 22 points and 19 rebounds as the Cavs closed out the Raptors.
“I always feel like in this league when you get a certain label, it always sticks with you no matter what,” Allen told Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. “No matter how hard you try to change it, it’s always going to follow you around. I think that if I play on my mind with wanting to change a narrative that was placed on me about prior performances, that’s going to weaken my strengths going forward and always try to weigh me back. I’ve always been the guy that just moved forward. Things happened in the past that go my way, that don’t go my way and that’s just part of playing basketball, being at the professional level. Just be my best going forward.”
Cavs head coach Kenny Atkinson said it was Allen’s best performance that he’s witnessed.
“Really took us over the top,” Atkinson said. “Best I’ve seen him. Coached him a long time. Known him for lots — that’s the best I’ve seen him.”
Here’s more on the Cavs:
- Allen’s outing allowed Cleveland to survive despite relatively modest outings from James Harden and Donovan Mitchell, ESPN’s Jamal Collier notes. Mitchell finished with 22 points on 9-of-20 shooting, and Harden had 18 points on 3-of-9 shooting. “[Harden] and I individually have had big nights,” Mitchell said. “We’ve had 50-balls, we’ve had bad nights, but at the end of the day, we haven’t won. We’re going to continue to be ourselves, right? But in the same focus, it isn’t just about me and him. It’s [Allen], it’s [Evan Mobley] … It’s everybody in that locker room.”
- Joe Vardon of The Athletic opines that the first-round series showed the Cavs’ flaws, which could lead to their elimination in the next round against the top-seeded Pistons. “(It showed) that they are vulnerable,” Vardon writes in an Athletic roundtable discussion. “Extremely vulnerable to ball pressure, to length on the wings, to teams that are willing to grab and claw and get into their chests. I think any playoff team that challenges Cleveland physically has a chance to advance. This is simply not an organization built to bang. But if you give the Cavs space, you see the offensive juggernaut they can be. Oh, we also saw when the Cavs bother to look inside, to Allen and to Evan Mobley, it opens up the rest of the offense.”
- The Cavs will be going up against their former coach, J.B. Bickerstaff, which will make for a juice storyline, Jason Lloyd of The Athletic notes. Bickerstaff will know how to guard Mitchell as well as any coach in the league, Lloyd adds, and the Cavs need the best version of Mitchell and Harden to advance.
Pistons Notes: Bickerstaff, Thompson, Green, Duren, Cunningham
After dropping Game 1 at home to the Magic, the Pistons once again struggled to get their offense going in the first half of Game 2. But things turned around when the third quarter got underway, fueled in part by a passionate halftime outburst from head coach J.B. Bickerstaff, ESPN’s Ohm Yungmisuk writes.
“He really got on us in the locker room,” forward Tobias Harris said. “[His message was] there is no more of ‘my bads.’ It’s like they’re out there hustling, getting offensive boards on us. And there’s too many of them for us [to allow] as a group. We know that’s not our standard.”
Bickerstaff loved how his team responded to the adversity, putting together a 30-3 run on the back of good shooting and tenacious defense.
“That’s us,” said Isaiah Stewart, who had a major impact with 10 points and two blocks. “That’s what we were talking about. If we just be who we are, who we’ve been all season long, we’d be just fine.”
We have more from the Pistons:
- While their names might not show up in the headlines as often as some, Ausar Thompson and Javonte Green were heroes in their own right in Game 2, Marlowe Alter writes for the Detroit Free Press. A Defensive Player of the Year finalist, Thompson struggled with fouls in the first half, but came out in the third quarter and shut down the Magic’s offense, registering a pair of big steals that helped the Pistons build their momentum. Green, meanwhile, managed to impact the game without hitting a shot. He had three blocks and five rebounds in 23 minutes, including a huge weak-side block on Magic star Paolo Banchero. Green played in every game for the Pistons this season and showed why he had earned Bickerstaff’s trust with his gritty defense.
- Jalen Duren‘s rise has been a major force helping to propel the Pistons’ ascendance from perpetual lottery dweller to bona fide contender, ESPN’s Michael A. Fletcher writes. The 22-year-old sets the physical, imposing tone that the team prides itself on, and has grown considerably as a defender and offensive creator this season. In doing so, he has helped the Pistons get back to their Bad Boy roots.
- Orlando coach Jamahl Mosley only needed two words to describe Cade Cunningham‘s impact in Game 2. “He’s special,” Mosley said, according to Coty M. Davis of The Detroit News. The talented guard scored 27 points, along with 11 assists and six rebounds, putting the Magic away through off-the-dribble breakdowns and timely play-making. “He’s him, and he understands that,” Bickerstaff said. “To have the size, agility, touch, speed, (and) patience that he has. He’s a matchup nightmare for people. It takes multiple bodies to stop him, and then even that, because he can get to his spot and shoot as many, it’s hard to get to him. So, he’s embraced the moment, and he’s leading us the way he needs to.“
NBA Announces Finalists For 2025/26 Awards
The NBA has announced the finalists for this season’s major awards, including Most Valuable Player, Rookie of the Year, Coach of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, Sixth Man of the Year, Most Improved Player, and Clutch Player of the Year.
The MVP, Rookie of the Year, and Coach of the Year finalists were announced at halftime of the NBC broadcast of Game 1 between the Pistons and Magic, while the league’s official account tweeted the rest.
Most Valuable Player
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Thunder)
- Nikola Jokic (Nuggets)
- Victor Wembanyama (Spurs)
The leaders of the three top teams in the Western Conference all have strong arguments for MVP. Jokic became the first player to lead the league in rebounds and assists per game while also averaging 27.7 points. Gilgeous-Alexander scored 31.1 PPG and led the Thunder to the league’s best record despite the fact that multiple starters missed substantial time this season. Wembanyama averaged 25.0 points, 11.5 rebounds, and a league-best 3.1 blocks per game while emerging as a lock for Defensive Player of the Year.
Rookie of the Year
- Cooper Flagg (Mavericks)
- Kon Knueppel (Hornets)
- VJ Edgecombe (Sixers)
This race is expected to come down to the former Duke teammates. Knueppel played a key role for a resurgent Hornets squad, becoming the first rookie to lead the league in made three-pointers while averaging 18.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per game in 81 appearances. Flagg’s Mavs finished well out of the postseason picture, but he showed massive star upside, averaging 21.0 PPG, 6.7 RPG, and 4.5 APG while scoring at least 42 points in four separate games. Edgecombe averaged 35.0 minutes per game over 75 contests, posting a well-rounded 16.0 PPG, 5.6 RPG, and 4.2 APG.
Coach of the Year
- Joe Mazzulla (Celtics)
- J.B. Bickerstaff (Pistons)
- Mitch Johnson (Spurs)
Mazzulla and Bickerstaff each led massively overperforming teams that managed to dominate the Eastern Conference despite having players in and out of the lineup all year. Johnson helped navigate a tricky guard rotation and spacing issues as the Spurs posted the second-best record in the league.
Defensive Player of the Year
- Chet Holmgren (Thunder)
- Ausar Thompson (Pistons)
- Victor Wembanyama (Spurs)
Wembanyama is the overwhelming favorite to win this award, ranking first in total blocks, blocks per game, defensive rating, and defensive rebounding percentage this season. Holmgren was second in blocks per game for the league’s top defense, while Thompson proved himself to be arguably the best perimeter defender in the league with his combination of off-ball defensive play-making and point-of-attack dominance.
Most Improved Player
- Nickeil Alexander-Walker (Hawks)
- Deni Avdija (Trail Blazers)
- Jalen Duren (Pistons)
Both Avdija and Duren were first-time All-Stars this season, while Alexander-Walker earned a starting spot on his new team and raised his scoring from 9.4 points per game last season to 20.8 PPG this season on .459/.399/.902 shooting splits, all career high percentages.
Sixth Man of the Year
- Tim Hardaway Jr. (Nuggets)
- Jaime Jaquez Jr. (Heat)
- Keldon Johnson (Spurs)
Hardaway cracked 40% from three this season for the first time in his career while shooting 6.9 attempts in his 26.6 minutes per game. Most importantly for the injury-plagued Nuggets, he played 80 games, including six starts, and was the team’s fifth-highest scorer. Jaquez had an impressively well-rounded contribution off the bench, posting career-highs of 15.4 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 4.7 assists. Johnson was a crucial scoring hub for the Spurs bench units while adding offensive pop when the starters struggled to score.
Clutch Player of the Year
- Anthony Edwards (Timberwolves)
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Thunder)
- Jamal Murray (Nuggets)
Gilgeous-Alexander and Edwards ranked first and second, respectively, in clutch scoring per game, while Murray was second in total clutch points behind the Thunder star and shot the most efficiently from three of the guards.
Brett Siegel of Clutch Points notes (via Twitter) that the awards will be announced in the coming days and weeks, starting with Defensive Player of the Year on Monday, April 20.
J.B. Bickerstaff Wins Coaches Association Award
Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff has won the Michael H. Goldberg award for the 2025/26 season, earning Coach of the Year honors from the National Basketball Coaches Association, according to a press release.
This award, introduced in 2017 and named after longtime NBCA executive director Michael H. Goldberg, is voted on by the NBA’s 30 head coaches, none of whom can vote for himself.
It isn’t the NBA’s official Coach of the Year award, which is voted on by media members and is represented by the Red Auerbach Trophy. The winner of that award will be announced later this spring.
Bickerstaff has guided the Pistons to a remarkable turnaround since taking over as their head coach during the 2024 offseason. Coming off the worst season in franchise history, Detroit improved from 14-68 to 44-38 in Bickerstaff’s first year at the helm, then took another huge step forward in 2025/26, finishing the season with a 60-22 record. It was just the third 60-win season in team history and the first in two decades.
The Pistons had the NBA’s second-best defensive rating (108.9) and tied with the Spurs for the league’s No. 2 overall net rating (+8.4) in 2025/26, despite missing leading scorer Cade Cunningham for 18 games.
The NBCA Coach of the Year award has frequently been a bellwether for the NBA’s Coach of the Year honor, which bodes well for Bickerstaff. In seven of the nine years since the award’s inception, the winner has gone on to be named the NBA’s Coach of the Year, including in 2025 when Kenny Atkinson of the Cavaliers won both awards.
Still, there’s a crowded field of candidates for Coach of the Year. The NBCA noted within its release that seven different coaches earned votes for its award, “reflecting the depth of coaching excellence in the NBA this season.”
Besides Bickerstaff, Mark Daigneault (Thunder), Mitch Johnson (Spurs), Charles Lee (Hornets), Joe Mazzulla (Celtics), Quin Snyder (Hawks), and Tiago Splitter (Trail Blazers) each received at least one vote from their fellow coaches for this year’s NBCA award.
Pistons Notes: Cunningham, Duren, T. Smith, M. Williams
The 65-game rule has been a hot topic of conversation in recent weeks amid injuries to Cade Cunningham, Anthony Edwards and Luka Doncic, all of whom would have been shoo-ins for All-NBA spots prior to getting hurt. Pistons star Cunningham reflected on the rule after Wednesday’s win over Milwaukee, his first game back from a collapsed lung, writes Hunter Patterson of The Athletic.
“I feel a lot of different ways about it,” Cunningham said. “What they were trying to do with it is have superstars play and not sit out just to rest, because fans pay a lot of money to come watch us play games. I have a lot of respect for that; I know fans come to watch me play. I want to make sure I’m available and I give them a show whenever they come out. So in that way, I respect the rule. I think it’s a good rule.
“It’s tough for me right now, this year, because I think I did a lot of work to be in consideration for awards and All-NBA. I’m in a tough spot, but I think it’ll all play out how it’s supposed to play out. I’m just trying to do my best to help my team win. I’m hearing all this stuff about exceptions … I don’t know how all that works. I just keep doing my job day by day. Whatever comes will come, whatever is meant to be will be.”
Here’s more from Detroit:
- While Cunningham may not qualify for major postseason awards, All-Star center Jalen Duren met the minimum requirement on Wednesday, Patterson notes. Duren, who will be a restricted free agent this summer, offered some insight into Cunningham’s mentality while he was recovering from the injury. “Time away for him, probably personally, was needed,” Duren said. “It sucks that he was injured, but I think it gave him a mental break, obviously a physical break. He was able to kind of shake back and get his body right going into the playoffs. In terms of the team, I don’t think we really missed a beat because he wasn’t away. We were still around him, he would still be talking, he was still in the facility, still in the group chat, still giving his opinion on games. So it wasn’t really like he was away and today was the first time we’d seen him. His presence was always around.”
- Second-year big man Tolu Smith was converted from a two-way deal to a two-year standard contract earlier this week. The former Mississippi State star said his family was emotional when he FaceTimed them to inform them of the news, according to Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press (Twitter video link). Head coach J.B. Bickerstaff told reporters that the 25-year-old earned the promotion, Sankofa adds (via Twitter). “He’s been great. Over the past couple of years he’s done everything we’ve asked him to and more,” Bickerstaff said. “He plays a similar brand we play … we’ve seen stretches this year where he’s just dominated the painted area and dominated the offensive and defensive boards.”
- In an interesting interview with Marc J. Spears of Andscape, former Pistons head coach Monty Williams said he still follows the team and remains in contact with members of the organization. “Yeah, I do. I was talking to [Pistons assistant coach] Fred Vinson today, actually,” Williams told Spears. “Those guys have done an unreal job there. … I’ve been on teams that won. I’ve been on teams that didn’t win, and that was a failure for me — Detroit was. And I don’t shy away from that. What J.B. [Bickerstaff] and that staff have been able to do there should be applauded. Those guys are knocking it out of the park, and Cade is exactly what I thought he was. I couldn’t bring it out of him like J.B. has. And Jalen is knocking it out of the park, and Ausar [Thompson] and all those kids, man, they’re awesome. Would I have loved to have been a part of that? Absolutely. … But man, I’m cool with where I am and happy for those guys. I still talk to a number of people up there. … But yeah, I don’t shy away from that. I failed and that’s only going to make me better as a coach. And I’ve been able to share my failures with other people so that they can be better. I think that’s what life is about — or part of living — is to be able to talk about your shortcomings and failures so that you can help another person not go down that road. And that’s how I view it.” Williams has spent the past two seasons coaching his sons in Texas — his older son Elijah Williams, who has committed to Baylor, could be a one-and-done prospect in the 2027 draft, Spears writes. Williams added that he hasn’t ruled out a potential NBA return down the line, but he’s not actively seeking out head coaching jobs.