Cavaliers Coach Offers Honest Thoughts on Pistons

Heading into Friday night’s game against the Detroit Pistons, the Cleveland Cavaliers were looking to wrap up a four-game series against their Central Division rival.

In the first three outings against the Pistons this season, the Cavaliers found success with three straight victories. When they defeated the Pistons on January 31, it marked the eighth-straight time the Cavs found success over the Pistons.

Despite having a shorthanded lineup on Friday and missing key players such as Donovan Mitchell and Caris LeVert, the Cavaliers managed to take care of business against Detroit once again.

In a game where the Cavaliers had control from start until finish, Cleveland went home with a 110-100 victory. Considering where these two teams are at, it didn’t come as a surprise to see the second-seeded Cavs take care of business.

Regardless of the lack of shock due to the results, Cavaliers head coach J.B. Bickerstaff complimented the struggling Pistons for their approach through tough times.

“Give them a ton of credit,” Bickerstaff told reporters on Friday. “I think it’s extremely difficult — what they’re doing and what they’re going through — but they play. It deserves respect. They play hard, no matter what the score is. They never let down. They are physical, they share the game, they play well together.”

A double-digit loss was nothing to celebrate, but the Pistons’ second-half adjustments allowed them to cut deep into a 26-point deficit. Unfortunately, they just didn’t have enough to overcome Darius Garland and the Cavaliers, who picked up their 39th win of the year.

“Give them a ton of credit, they just didn’t stop,” Bickerstaff added. “They’re relentless. Give Monty [Williams] a ton of credit for getting guys to believe in one another no matter what the ups and downs are. I thought they did a phenomenal job in terms of competing.”

The Pistons collected loss No. 50 on Friday night. While they are no longer at the bottom of the barrel in the Eastern Conference, with the Washington Wizards taking over the last seed with a loss on Friday, the Pistons are still far, far away from contention.

Knowing that the playoffs are out of the question this late into the season, most teams would bag it up. Lately, Detroit’s opponents have witnessed that isn’t the case for the Pistons right now.