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). Before that, he was the head coach for the Memphis Grizzlies and the Cleveland Cavaliers, and has also been an assistant coach for several other NBA teams.
 Bickerstaff in 2021 | |
| Detroit Pistons | |
|---|---|
| Position | 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 | |
| As coach: | |
| 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 |
College career
editBickerstaff 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.
Coaching career
editAssistant coach and associate head coach (2004–2020)
editBickerstaff spent three seasons (2004–2007) with the Charlotte Bobcats as an assistant coach, before spending four (2007–2011) seasons as an assistant coach for the Minnesota Timberwolves. He was hired as an assistant coach by the Rockets on July 14, 2011.[1] He was made interim head coach of the Rockets on November 18, 2015, after Kevin McHale was fired.[2] On that same day, he made his coaching debut against the Portland Trail Blazers with a 108–103 overtime victory.[3]
After the season, Bickerstaff informed the Rockets that he had withdrawn his name for the head coaching search, effectively ending his tenure with the Houston Rockets.[4]
On June 8, 2016, Bickerstaff was hired by the Memphis Grizzlies to be the associate head coach.[5]
On November 27, 2017, Bickerstaff was promoted as the Grizzlies' interim head coach after the firing of David Fizdale.[6] On May 1, 2018, he was announced as the new permanent head coach of the Grizzlies.[7] On April 11, 2019, the Grizzlies fired Bickerstaff after the team failed to reach the playoffs.[8]
On May 19, 2019, the Cleveland Cavaliers named Bickerstaff assistant and associate head coach.[9]
Cleveland Cavaliers (2020–2024)
editOn February 19, 2020, head coach John Beilein resigned as head coach of the Cavaliers, and Bickerstaff was announced as the new head coach.[10] On March 10, the Cavaliers announced that they had agreed on a multi-year contract with Bickerstaff.[11] On December 25, 2021, the Cavaliers signed Bickerstaff to a multi-year contract extension.[12] Bickerstaff was fired on May 23, 2024, by the Cavaliers.[13]
Detroit Pistons (2024–present)
editOn July 3, 2024, Bickerstaff became the new head coach of the Detroit Pistons.[14]
Head coaching record
edit| 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 |
| Career | 545 | 255 | 290 | .468 | 22 | 7 | 15 | .318 | |||
Personal life
editBickerstaff is the son of former NBA coach Bernie Bickerstaff,[15] who is working for the Cavaliers in their front office serving as senior basketball advisor.[16][17]
References
edit- ^ "Rockets add Sampson, Bickerstaff, Finch and Gunning to coaching staff". NBA.com. July 14, 2011. Retrieved July 14, 2011.
- ^ "Rockets Relieve Kevin McHale of Head Coaching Duties". NBA.com. November 18, 2015. Retrieved November 18, 2015.
- ^ Blinebury, Fran (November 19, 2015). "ROCKETS TURN BACK PAGE FOR BICKERSTAFF". NBA.com. Retrieved November 19, 2015.
- ^ Feigen, Jonathan (May 4, 2016). "J.B. Bickerstaff pulls himself from consideration for Rockets' head coaching job". chron.com. Houston Chronicle. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
- ^ "Grizzlies announce additions to Coaching Staff". NBA.com. June 8, 2016. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
- ^ "Grizzlies relieve David Fizdale of head coaching duties". NBA.com. November 27, 2017. Retrieved November 27, 2017.
- ^ "Memphis Grizzlies introduce J.B. Bickerstaff Head Coach". NBA.com. May 1, 2018. Retrieved May 1, 2018.
- ^ "Memphis Grizzlies announce restructuring of basketball operations department". NBA.com. April 11, 2019. Archived from the original on April 11, 2019. Retrieved April 11, 2019.
- ^ "Cavaliers Agree to Terms with J.B. Bickerstaff to Become Associate Head Coach". NBA.com. May 19, 2019. Archived from the original on May 27, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
- ^ "John Beilein Resigns as Cavaliers Head Coach". NBA.com. February 19, 2020. Retrieved February 19, 2020.
- ^ "Cleveland Cavaliers and J.B. Bickerstaff Agree On Multi-Year Contract". NBA.com. March 10, 2020. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
- ^ "Cavaliers Sign J.B. Bickerstaff to Multi-Year Extension". NBA.com. December 25, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
- ^ "Cavs fire Bickerstaff despite run to East semis". ESPN.com. May 23, 2024. Retrieved May 23, 2024.
- ^ "DETROIT PISTONS ANNOUNCE J.B. BICKERSTAFF AS HEAD COACH". NBA.com. July 3, 2024. Retrieved July 3, 2024.
- ^ J.B. Bickerstaff Archived March 29, 2016, at the Wayback Machine. nba.com
- ^ "Cavs Media Guide" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on February 10, 2018. Retrieved June 6, 2019.
- ^ Koby Altman Got his Dream Job... ESPN
External links
edit- J. B. Bickerstaff – college basketball player statistics at Sports Reference