Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff ripped into the officiating crew on Saturday in his post-game media session following a six-point loss to the Thunder, as Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press writes. Bickerstaff told reporters that he was “extremely proud” about how his team competed, but was “disgusted” by the way the game was officiated.
“The level of disrespect was above and beyond,” the Pistons’ coach said (YouTube link). “They have a guy fall down and trip on his own teammate’s foot, they review us for a hostile act. They throw an elbow to our chest/neck area, I ask them to at least take a look at it. Just show us the respect to take a look at it. No one would take a look at it. The disrespect has gone on far enough and I’m not going to allow our guys to be treated the way they were treated tonight.”
During the sequence Bickerstaff was referring to, the referees reviewed a relatively mild Isaiah Stewart loose-ball foul to see if it constituted a “hostile act.” The infraction was eventually ruled a common foul, but the Pistons were hit with three technicals – two and an ejection for Cade Cunningham and one Dennis Schröder – following that replay review for arguing with the officiating crew.
Crew chief Brian Forte explained to a pool reporter after the game that Cunningham repeatedly used “profanity” toward an official, while Schröder was given a tech for “continuous complaining” after the Pistons had received a team warning.
Bickerstaff and Pistons wing Ausar Thompson were also hit with technical fouls earlier in the game.
“I tried to have a conversation with an official, the official is arguing with (Thunder head coach) Mark (Daigneault), I say his name one time and he screams at me and tells me that’s enough,” Bickerstaff said, per Sankofa. “We understand that we play a style of ball that’s physical, it’s on the edge. I coach my ass off in a passionate way, I’m into the game, our players are into the game. We understand that.
“But we deserve a level of respect because we’re competing our tails off and bringing something positive to this league. We’re growing young players, our young players are competing their tails off. The least that they can do is give us the same respect that everybody else in this league gets and get refereed the same that everybody in this league gets reffed,” Bickerstaff continued, repeatedly and forcefully slamming his hand on the table for emphasis. “And enough is enough of it. What you saw tonight was disgusting. It was a disgusting display of disrespect towards our guys and what we’re trying to do.”
The Thunder made 17-of-22 free throw attempts on the night, compared to 9-of-13 for the Pistons — that disparity made the difference in a game that Oklahoma City won by a score of 113-107.
Asked in his own post-game media session about Bickerstaff’s comments, Daigneault said he advised his team before tip-off that the officiating crew, based on the Thunder’s research and referee analytics, was unlikely to call a ton of fouls.
“That referee crew was the loosest whistle coming into the game that we’ve seen all season, in terms of how little they call,” he said (Twitter video link via Joel Lorenzi of The Oklahoman). “So we knew, we told the guys before the game, ‘This is going to be a physical game because it’s Detroit and they’re not going to call very much.’ That bore out, I thought, with the amount of physicality they allowed in the game. I thought our guys did a great job of not getting distracted by anything.”
While the NBA hasn’t made an announcement yet, Bickerstaff seems likely to face a fine for publicly calling out the officials.
No question that politics are involved here. Makes me sick that’s what it becomes all about. Smdh
Are you starting to fall out of love of basketball? I have
With *
Look at JB talking big ball now that the Pistons have won a few games.
Look at JB want to run with the big dogs like he’s a playoff team or finals contender now. Wow it doesn’t take much to get up on a high horse.
But with that said, I respect him standing up for his guys and the improvement the Pistons have made this year. That’s absolutely awesome and great to see especially with their young core growing.
But the respect takes a little time and especially with Isaiah “Greymond Green” Stewart out there, you’re going to get the benefit of the doubt a little less often than say a skilled team such as the OKC thunder.
But JB give it some time.., you’ll be invited to the adult table pretty soon if you keep winning and you’ll be on TV, you’ll be getting calls, and playoff wins will be common place.
Future definitely looks bright for the Pistons.
Boo hoo. Coaches only complain when the calls affect them. If they hurt the opponent or other teams around the league, crickets. Nobody truly cares about changing the status quo, so get it out of your system and move on.
You’re right, of course, Shea. But the city of Detroit is loving Bernie Bickerstaff these days. The team barely had a pulse when he arrived. Did you hear the fans when Cade got thrown out and Bernie was having his sideline tantrum.
Yeah, I don’t blame him for going off. Everyone has their limit. And he’s done a great job overall.
@aristotle Please tell me you’re the same guy that called up Pat Caputo today.
I am not, sorry. Would I be making a friend or enemy?
Bernie and JB are not the same person. Bernie is a front office advisor in Cleveland…
WillDS , thanks for pointing that out. JB is Bernie’s son, but I’m showing my age.
I am not, sorry. Would I be making a friend or enemy?
A small market team like OKC, not many casuals are going to think of them as getting calls.