Emotions ran high in another physical battle for the star guard Cade Cunningham and the Detroit Pistons in a 113-107 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Detroit grew frustrated with the officiating as they were called for five technical fouls in the third quarter. During the postgame media session, reigning Eastern Conference Coach of the Month J.B. Bickerstaff passionately addressed the direct grievances he had with the referees.
“I’m disgusted by the way that game was officiated. The level of disrespect was above and beyond. 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 and neck area. I ask for them to at least take a look at it, and no one would take a look at it,” Bickerstaff stated. “The disrespect has gone far enough, and I’m not going to allow our guys to be treated how they were treated tonight.”
The Pistons were on the unfortunate end of numerous collisions where the officials ruled fouls on them. Forward Ausar Thompson picked up the first technical foul during the flurry after arguing a no-call where the Pistons felt like they were fouled. Bickerstaff picked up the next technical foul about five minutes later for disputing an offensive foul called on rookie Ron Holland.
Things continued to spiral for the Pistons as starting guard Cade Cunningham and backup Dennis Schroder picked up technical fouls of their own less than a minute after. The officials elected to eject Cunningham with a second technical foul after he continued jawing for an answer. Bickerstaff continued to voice his frustration during the postgame while recapping the heated exchange.
“We understand that we play a style of ball that’s physical and on the edge. I coach my a** off with a passionate way. I’m into the games and our players are into the games. But we deserve a level of respect because we’re competing our tails off and bringing something positive to this league,” Bickerstaff spoke.
“We’re growing young players. The least that they can do is get the same respect that everybody else in this league gets and get refereed the same way that everybody else in this league gets reffed. 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.”
Pistons drop second game in a row despite comeback effort
The Pistons lost their second consecutive game to the Thunder after coming up short to the Washington Wizards on Thursday. Detroit has not lost any ground in the Eastern Conference standings, regardless of the losses. They remain in the sixth seed of the East with a 37-31 record.
All-Star guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added to his MVP-caliber season with a superstar performance. The Pistons struggled to keep him in check as he dropped 48 points on 17-of-26 shooting from the field and 4-of-6 from 3. Gilgeous-Alexander cashed in his free throw opportunities by hitting all 10 attempts.
Forward Tobias Harris led the Pistons in scoring with 18 for the night. Schroder recorded a double-double, scoring 17 points and dishing 11 assists to aid Detroit. Reserve guard Malik Beasley scored 15 points off the bench. Cunningham put up 11 points, 9 assists, and 7 rebounds in 29 minutes before his costly ejection.
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