The Pistons had a pretty conservative offseason and opted to sign veteran role players to improve their rotation rather than trade key pieces for a star. This season, they’ll be relying on internal growth from their young players to take a leap as a team. As a result, coach JB Bickerstaff also has a very important role and can be rewarded well if everything goes according to plan.
The Pistons’ success comes down to coaching and development
Because the Pistons have not made major personnel changes from last season, Bickerstaff will get a large share of credit for team improvements. And there are still improvements to be made the Pistons finished sixth in the east last season with a record of 44-38, and could improve on both record and standing this season.
Bickerstaff seems to have the right mentality for implementing changes which can continue the momentum of last season, especially in the second half of the season. So far in media day and training camp, he has emphasized the need for defensive tenacity and turning defense into quick offense through fast break opportunities. This was exactly the formula that helped the Pistons go 30-22 at the end of last season.
Typically, when teams make a big splash in the off-season whether through free agency or trade, the original core of the team will not get due credit if the team overall improves. For example, coach Jamahl Mosley of the Orlando Magic might not place highly in Coach of the Year voting, even if the Magic improve a lot, because they made an ambitious trade for Desmond Bane.
However, the Pistons have kept their same core group intact, and only changed on the fringes. Bickerstaff will also get a boost for taking an already good team to even greater heights, which is a different challenge than what he faced last season. Last season, he arguably deserved the Coach of the Year award for tripling the team’s win total from the previous season. But he lost out to Kenny Atkinson, who helped the Cleveland Cavaliers go from a solid playoff team to the best regular season team in the Eastern Conference.
Proving that he can excel in both aspects of top-tier coaching will make Bickerstaff’s case for the award undeniable. Especially after his tremendous impact last season adding stability to the Pistons team, another year of excellent coaching with a significant improvement will establish him as one of the top coaches in the entire NBA.
The Pistons core is full of young players who are still developing and likely to improve this season. Combined with the weakness of the Eastern Conference this season, it could easily lead to greater success for the Pistons in the overall NBA landscape. Exceeding expectations is often the best way to win the Coach of the Year award and JB Bickerstaff has a golden opportunity to do just that.