The race for NBA Coach of the Year is getting intense.
In fact, this might end up being the most exciting end-of-season award for 2024-25.
Speaking on “First Take,” Stephen A. Smith heaped praise on the Detroit Pistons and said their leader, J.B. Bickerstaff, should win the coveted prize.
“J. B. Bickerstaff is the Coach of the Year. I am shell-shocked at what I’ve seen from Detroit,” Smith emphatically said.
“J. B. Bickerstaff is the Coach of the Year. I am shell-shocked at what I’ve seen from Detroit.”
—@stephenasmith on the Pistons’ head coach 👀 pic.twitter.com/pH9p6r0bd5
— First Take (@FirstTake) February 27, 2025
He mentioned that he earlier submitted JJ Redick as a Coach of the Year candidate, and, while he remains impressed by Redick’s work, he thinks Bickerstaff deserves this honor more than anyone else.
Bickerstaff has turned things around for the team in a huge way.
Last season, they held a league-worst 14-68 record and were earning a place in NBA history for how poorly they were performing.
Now they have a 33-26 record, have won eight games in a row, and just defeated the reigning champion Boston Celtics.
They look like a completely different team, even though a lot of their roster has remained the same.
Bickerstaff had his work cut out for him when he came to the team in the summer, and few people thought the Pistons would find this sort of success in 2024-25.
But they are now legitimate playoff contenders less than a year after being the worst team in the league by far.
There is still competition for Coach of the Year, including Kenny Atkinson of the Cleveland Cavaliers.
All eyes will be on both the Cavs and the Pistons for the final weeks of the regular season because this is a race that’s only heating up.
NEXT: Fans React to Pistons Beating The Celtics On Wednesday
