One major subplot in the Cleveland Cavaliers’ Eastern Conference semifinal clash against the Detroit Pistons is that JB Bickerstaff will be coaching against his former team. Bickerstaff was the Cavs’ head coach from 2020, when he took over from John Beilein, until 2024, when Cleveland decided to move on from him after they lost in the second round of the playoffs to the eventual champion Boston Celtics.
Kenny Atkinson ended up being the man to replace Bickerstaff, and so far, it’s not like Atkinson has coached the Cavs deeper than Bickerstaff ever did. The prospect of getting one over the Cavs has to be gratifying for Bickerstaff, who took over as head coach for the Pistons prior to the start of the 2024-25 season and has since coached Detroit to the playoffs twice in two years.
On Tuesday night, Bickerstaff’s Pistons ended up taking Game 1 of their series against the Cavs, 111-101, and Atkinson could not have been any more complimentary of Cleveland’s former head coach who laid the foundations for this team.
“What a year he had, what a year the team had … you relish these challenges. These guys are elite in their business. Of course, just like with the players it’s a challenge. Respect the heck out of him and what they did this year,” Atkinson said, per Omari Sankofa II of Detroit Free Press.
Bickerstaff is an incredible head coach for developing young teams; he helped turn around the Cavs starting in his second full season in charge, when they finished with a 44-38 record and fell just short of qualifying for the playoffs. Cleveland improved bit by bit under his tutelage, but the Cavs decided to head into a different direction — effectively helping the Pistons.
One would think that Atkinson has also thought of having to lead this Cavs team past the Pistons to repay their faith in him, as the Cleveland front office saw him as the man to take the team to the next level — which he hasn’t yet.