J. B. Bickerstaff
American basketball coach (born 1979)
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John-Blair Bickerstaff (born March 10, 1979) is an American professional basketball coach who is the head coach of the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was previously the head coach for the Memphis Grizzlies and the Cleveland Cavaliers, and has also been an assistant coach for several other NBA teams. He is currently one of the finalists for the KIA 2026 Coach of the Year Award.
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Bickerstaff in 2021 | |
| Detroit Pistons | |
|---|---|
| Title | Head coach |
| League | NBA |
| Personal information | |
| Born | March 10, 1979 Denver, Colorado, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) |
| Listed weight | 190 lb (86 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | East (Denver, Colorado) |
| College |
|
| NBA draft | 2001: undrafted |
| Position | Forward |
| Coaching career | 2004–present |
| Career history | |
Coaching | |
| 2004–2007 | Charlotte Bobcats (assistant) |
| 2007–2011 | Minnesota Timberwolves (assistant) |
| 2011–2015 | Houston Rockets (assistant) |
| 2015–2016 | Houston Rockets (interim) |
| 2016–2017 | Memphis Grizzlies (associate) |
| 2017–2019 | Memphis Grizzlies |
| 2019–2020 | Cleveland Cavaliers (assistant/assoc. HC) |
| 2020–2024 | Cleveland Cavaliers |
| 2024–present | Detroit Pistons |
| Career highlights | |
| |
College career
Bickerstaff played his first two collegiate seasons at Oregon State and finished his career at the University of Minnesota. He averaged 10.9 points and 6.1 rebounds as a senior for the Golden Gophers. Bickerstaff suffered season-ending injuries in both seasons he played with the Golden Gophers.[1]
Bickerstaff was the director of men's basketball operations for the Golden Gophers during the 2002–03 season.[1] He joined the radio broadcast team for the Minnesota Timberwolves during the 2003–04 season.[2]
Coaching career
Assistant coach (2004–2011)
Bickerstaff started his coaching career with the Charlotte Bobcats as an assistant coach in 2004 where he worked under his father, head coach and general manager Bernie Bickerstaff.[3] He spent three seasons (2004–2007) with the Bobcats as an assistant coach, before spending four (2007–2011) seasons as an assistant coach for the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Houston Rockets (2011-2016)
Bickerstaff was hired as an assistant coach by the Houston Rockets on July 14, 2011.[4] He was made interim head coach of the Rockets on November 18, 2015, after Kevin McHale was fired.[5] On that same day, he made his coaching debut against the Portland Trail Blazers with a 108–103 overtime victory.[6]
After the season, Bickerstaff informed the Rockets that he had withdrawn his name for the head coaching search, effectively ending his tenure with the Houston Rockets.[7]
Memphis Grizzlies (2016-2019)
On June 8, 2016, Bickerstaff was hired by the Memphis Grizzlies to be the associate head coach.[8]
On November 27, 2017, Bickerstaff was promoted as the Grizzlies' interim head coach after the firing of David Fizdale.[9] On May 1, 2018, he was announced as the new permanent head coach of the Grizzlies.[10] On April 11, 2019, the Grizzlies fired Bickerstaff after the team failed to reach the playoffs.[11]
Cleveland Cavaliers (2019–2024)
On May 19, 2019, the Cleveland Cavaliers named Bickerstaff associate head coach.[12]
On February 19, 2020, head coach John Beilein resigned as head coach of the Cavaliers, and Bickerstaff was announced as the new head coach.[13] On March 10, the Cavaliers announced that they had agreed on a multi-year contract with Bickerstaff.[14] On December 25, 2021, the Cavaliers signed Bickerstaff to a multi-year contract extension.[15] Bickerstaff was fired on May 23, 2024, by the Cavaliers.[16]
Detroit Pistons (2024–present)
On July 3, 2024, Bickerstaff became the new head coach of the Detroit Pistons.[17] On December 23, Bickerstaff would lead the Pistons to their 15th win of the season. This would be one more win than the Pistons had for the entirety of the 2023–24 season. On March 3, 2025, Bickerstaff was named the NBA Eastern Conference Coach of the Month for February 2025 after guiding the Pistons to a 9–3 record, which included an eight-game winning streak and a 4–0 road mark.[18] On March 28, 2025, Bickerstaff would help lead the Pistons to their first playoff appearance since the 2018–19 season. On March 30, 2025, Bickerstaff was ejected from the Pistons game against the Minnesota Timberwolves after an on-court brawl broke out. Pistons players Isaiah Stewart, Ron Holland, and Marcus Sasser were ejected, along with Timberwolves players Donte DiVincenzo and Naz Reid. Timberwolves assistant coach Pablo Prigioni was also ejected. Bickerstaff finished in 2nd place in Coach of the Year voting in 2025.
The Detroit Pistons opened the 2025–26 season with a thirteen game win streak. He was named the Eastern Conference Coach of the Month for October/November 2025.[19]
In May 2026, he agreed to a contract extension with the Detroit Pistons.[20]
Head coaching record
| Regular season | G | Games coached | W | Games won | L | Games lost | W–L % | Win–loss % |
| Playoffs | PG | Playoff games | PW | Playoff wins | PL | Playoff losses | PW–L % | Playoff win–loss % |
| Team | Year | G | W | L | W–L% | Finish | PG | PW | PL | PW–L% | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houston | 2015–16 | 71 | 37 | 34 | .521 | 4th in Southwest | 5 | 1 | 4 | .200 | Lost in first round |
| Memphis | 2017–18 | 63 | 15 | 48 | .238 | 5th in Southwest | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Memphis | 2018–19 | 82 | 33 | 49 | .402 | 3rd in Southwest | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Cleveland | 2019–20 | 11 | 5 | 6 | .455 | 5th in Central | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Cleveland | 2020–21 | 72 | 22 | 50 | .306 | 4th in Central | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Cleveland | 2021–22 | 82 | 44 | 38 | .537 | 3rd in Central | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Cleveland | 2022–23 | 82 | 51 | 31 | .622 | 2nd in Central | 5 | 1 | 4 | .200 | Lost in first round |
| Cleveland | 2023–24 | 82 | 48 | 34 | .585 | 2nd in Central | 12 | 5 | 7 | .417 | Lost in conference semifinals |
| Detroit | 2024–25 | 82 | 44 | 38 | .537 | 4th in Central | 6 | 2 | 4 | .333 | Lost in first round |
| Detroit | 2025–26 | 82 | 60 | 22 | .732 | 1st in Central | – | TBD | |||
| Career | 709 | 359 | 350 | .506 | 28 | 9 | 19 | .321 | |||
Personal life
Bickerstaff is the son of former NBA coach Bernie Bickerstaff,[21] who is working for the Pistons in their front office serving as senior basketball advisor. Bickerstaff and his wife have three kids.[22][23] He has been a Philadelphia Eagles fan since childhood.[24]