JB Bickerstaff is walking into next season with something coaches rarely get after a 60-win year: a real path back to Coach of the Year.
That sounds backward on its face. Usually, when a team piles up that many wins, the coach has already cashed in on the recognition.
But Bickerstaff’s case is different, and the league’s shifting balance in the East is a big reason why. With other conference contenders making major additions this offseason, Detroit has slipped into that familiar underdog lane again - the kind that can make a strong season look even more impressive than the last one.
Bickerstaff has already built a convincing résumé in Detroit. In his first season, he helped turn a 14-win team into a 44-win group in 2025.
Then he pushed the Pistons even higher last season, leading them to 60 wins and the top seed in the East. And yet, both times, the award went elsewhere.
He finished runner-up in Coach of the Year voting in each of the last two seasons. Last year, the trophy went to Joe Mazzulla of the Celtics, even though Boston won five fewer games than the year before, finishing 56-26 after going 61-21. Mazzulla was credited for keeping the Celtics afloat without Jayson Tatum and other key losses from the previous season.
This time, though, the setup is different. Detroit is not being treated like a team on the rise so much as one that’s about to slide back toward the pack.
The East is expected to get much stronger at the top through trades and injury returns, and the Pistons have also lost some important pieces from last season. That combination has pushed expectations down around Bickerstaff’s team.
That’s exactly where the opening comes in.
If Bickerstaff can steer Detroit back near the top of the conference, it would strengthen the case that what he’s doing isn’t a one-year burst or a nice story. It would point to a coach consistently getting real results. And if the Pistons keep winning the way they have under him - especially with defense still serving as one of their biggest strengths, even with room to improve - the award conversation could swing his way.
There are still obvious concerns around Detroit. The Pistons struggled badly in the playoffs after earning the top seed, and the offseason did little to quiet the doubts.
Jalen Duren remains unsigned, which only adds to the uncertainty. But the pieces that matter most still sit in place: Cade Cunningham, Ausar Thompson and Bickerstaff’s defensive approach.
A top record once can be dismissed. In a conference that spent most of last season without Tatum and now-Miami star Giannis Antetokounmpo, people can chalk it up to circumstances. But if Detroit finishes with a top-three record again in 2027, the league will have a much harder time ignoring them.
And if that happens, Bickerstaff may finally get the recognition that’s been waiting for him.