National Basketball Coaches Association Announces 2026 Michael H. Goldberg NBCA Coach of the Year Award Voted Annually By 30 NBA Head Coaches

The National Basketball Coaches Association have announced that Detroit Pistons Head Coach J.B. Bickerstaff is the 2026 recipient of the Michael H. Goldberg NBCA Coach of the Year Award.

The Michael H. Goldberg NBCA Coach of the Year Award recognizes the dedication, commitment, and hard work of NBA head coaches and is presented annually to a head coach who helped guide his players to a higher level of performance on-the-court and showed outstanding service and dedication to the community off-the-court. It honors the spirit of Mr. Goldberg, the esteemed long-time Executive Director of the NBCA, who set the standard for loyalty, integrity, love of the game, passionate representation, and tireless promotion of NBA coaching. The award is unique in that it is voted upon by the winners’ peers, the head coaches of all 30 NBA teams.

In total, seven head coaches received votes, reflecting the depth of coaching excellence in the NBA this season. In addition to Bickerstaff, the following head coaches also received votes [listed alphabetically]: Mark Daigneault, Oklahoma City Thunder; Mitch Johnson, San Antonio Spurs; Charles Lee, Charlotte Hornets; Joe Mazzulla, Boston Celtics; Quin Snyder, Atlanta Hawks; and Tiago Splitter, Portland Trail Blazers.

“I’m extremely honored to receive this recognition from my coaching peers,” said Detroit Pistons Head Coach J.B. Bickerstaff. “None of this is possible without the many people I’ve been blessed with along my journey, beginning with my dad, who has always been my inspiration for wanting to get into this profession, and my family for their love and support. I also owe a tremendous amount of gratitude to all the coaches I’ve worked with and learned from throughout my career.”

“I’m grateful to my coaching staff for all they do to help prepare our team for every practice and game. Tom Gores, Trajan Langdon and the basketball front office, and the Pistons organization have provided us with all the resources to go out and be successful. I’m thankful for their support and dedication to what we’re building here in Detroit. I’ve been lucky to coach a special group of young men this season and seeing their individual and collective growth has been gratifying. I’m truly thankful for their commitment, dedication and willingness to allow me to coach them. This award is truly an acknowledgement of all the hard work done by everyone who work with our players daily including our medical and performance teams, player development coaches and all of our support staff. ”

“To receive this award after recently being elected by my peers as the next President of the National Basketball Coaches Association adds special meaning. It’s a responsibility I look forward to upholding and building upon at a standard of excellence that’s been maintained by Rick Carlisle over the last two-plus decades.”

Coach Bickerstaff, in his second season as Head Coach of the Pistons, led the team to the best record in the Eastern Conference and the third-best overall record in the NBA.

The Pistons captured their first 60-win season since the 2005-2006 campaign and notched 32 wins at home and a franchise-record 28 road wins. The Bickerstaff-led Pistons finished with an overall record of 60-22, a 16-game improvement from last season, and the team’s third-best mark in franchise history. Bickerstaff became the first head coach in NBA history to take a franchise from 60 losses to 60 wins in a two-season span. This season, Bickerstaff also became the third fastest coach to reach 100 wins in franchise history (159 games).

Coach Bickerstaff was named the Eastern Conference Coach of the Month for October/November and was selected as the head coach of the Eastern Conference (Team USA Stars) at the 2026 NBA All-Star Game where he coached the squad to a win.

Bickerstaff has transformed the Pistons into one of the most dominant and aggressive forces in the paint on both sides of the ball. The Pistons led the league in points in the paint (57.9) and blocks per game (6.4). Detroit was also the only team to rank top five in both offensive and defensive points allowed in the paint. Additionally, the Pistons ranked top three in numerous statistical categories, including:

• First in blocks per game (6.4)
• First in steals per game (10.4)
• First in offensive points in the paint (57.9)
• Second in defensive rating (108.9)
• Second in net rating (8.4)
• Third in free throws attempted (26.1)
• Third in plus minus (8.2)
• Third in offensive rebounds per game (13.1)

“J.B. Bickerstaff is extremely deserving of this award and the recognition from his fellow Head Coaches,” said David Fogel, NBCA Executive Director and General Counsel. “This season Coach Bickerstaff has shown the ultimate dedication to the coaching profession. Not only has he guided the Pistons to one of the best seasons in franchise history, but his coaching peers also elected him as the sixth President in NBCA history. Congratulations to Coach Bickerstaff, the Pistons assistant coaches, and the entire organization on winning the Michael H. Goldberg NBCA Coach of the Year Award.”

In 1980, just four years after the NBCA was founded, Goldberg became its first Executive Director. He guided the organization during the years of the greatest growth in professional basketball. He helped gain significant benefits for NBA Coaches, including increased retirement funds, salary levels, and disability insurance. Prior to the NBCA, Goldberg was General Counsel of the American Basketball Association.

Previous recipients of the Michael H. Goldberg NBCA Coach of the Year Award are:

2025: Kenny Atkinson
2024: Mark Daigneault
2023: Mike Brown
2022: Monty Williams
2021: Monty Williams
2020: Mike Budenholzer and Billy Donovan
2019: Mike Budenholzer
2018: Dwane Casey
2017: Mike D’Antoni and Erik Spoelstra

The post Pistons Head Coach J.B. Bickerstaff 2026 NBCA Coach of the Year appeared first on In Play! magazine.

PISTONS’ CUNNINGHAM AND LAKERS’ DONČIĆ ELIGIBLE FOR 2025-26 NBA AWARDS

The NBA and National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) have agreed, in accordance with the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), that Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham and Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Dončić are eligible for all annual awards for the 2025-26 NBA regular season.

Cunningham played in 63 qualified games due in part to missing 12 games as a result of a collapsed lung that was diagnosed on March 17. Dončić played in 64 qualified games due in part to missing two games to attend the birth of his daughter in Slovenia. The NBA and NBPA agreed that, taking into account the totality of the circumstances for Cunningham and Dončić, each player qualified for awards under the extraordinary circumstances provision in the CBA.

Additionally, Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards, who played in 60 qualified games, filed an extraordinary circumstances challenge under the CBA, seeking award eligibility before an independent arbitrator. Edwards’ challenge was denied and, as a result, he is not eligible for annual awards for the 2025-26 NBA regular season.

The post PISTONS’ CUNNINGHAM ELIGIBLE FOR 2025-26 NBA AWARDS appeared first on In Play! magazine.

CADE CUNNINGHAM NAMED EASTERN CONFERENCE PLAYER OF THE MONTH

The NBA announced has that Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham was named Eastern Conference Player of the Month for games played in February. Previously named Eastern Conference Player of the Month in November, it marks the second time in his career that Cunningham has received the honor.

Cunningham (6-6, 243) led the Pistons to a 9-2 record in February – tied for the best record in the Eastern Conference last month – while averaging 25.4 points, 6.5 rebounds and 9.9 assists while shooting 47.2% from the field in 11 games. Cunningham also made his first career start in the NBA All-Star game in February and has led the Pistons to an NBA-best 76.3% winning percentage thus far and their most wins (45) since 2007-08.

Cunningham’s February performances included seven double-doubles and three 30-plus point performances. In a win at New York on Feb. 19, Cunningham tallied 42 points, 13 assists, eight rebounds and two blocks, the first Piston in franchise history and just the third player in NBA history to record such minimums at Madison Square Garden (Allen Iverson and LeBron James). Cunningham also notched a four-game streak of at least 10 assists and two blocks from Feb. 19-26, the second longest such streak in NBA history and the longest streak since 1994 (Mookie Blaylock, five-game streak).

The No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft, Cunningham has averaged 25.5 points, 5.8 rebounds and 9.8 assists in 35.0 minutes per game through 53 games this season. His 9.8 assists per game lead the Eastern Conference and rank second in the NBA (Nikola Jokic) and would be the highest average by a Piston since Isiah Thomas (10.0, 1986-87). Through 261 career games as a Piston, he ranks first in total points (5,938) and second in assists (2,049) behind Isiah Thomas (2,399) in the first 261 games to begin a career.

The Arlington, Texas, native is one of two players in the NBA this season averaging at least 25.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 9.0 assists per game, joining Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets. Among all guards this season, Cunningham ranks first in the NBA in double-doubles (33) and third in lowest opponent field goal percentage (.428). Cunningham is also the only player in the NBA this season with at least three games with four-plus steals and two-plus blocks.

His 30 point-assists double-doubles this season leads the entire NBA, and he currently ranks fourth in the association in total double-doubles (33).

The post CADE CUNNINGHAM NAMED E.C. PLAYER OF THE MONTH appeared first on In Play! magazine.

JALEN DUREN NAMED EASTERN CONFERENCE PLAYER OF THE WEEK

The NBA announced that Detroit Pistons center Jalen Duren was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week for games played from Monday, Feb. 23 through Sunday, March 1. This marks the first time in his career that Duren has received the honor.

Duren (6-10, 250) led the Pistons to a 3-1 record for the week with averages of 25.8 points (.639 FG%), an Eastern-Conference-leading 13.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.3 blocks and 1.3 steals per game while recording a double-double in all four games.

Duren led Detroit in its first contest of the week, notching his 26th double-double of the season with 25 points and 10 rebounds against San Antonio on Feb. 23. He followed that performance up with 29 points and 15 rebounds to help Detroit knock off the Western Conference No. 1 seeded Oklahoma City Thunder on Feb. 25. Duren then tied a career-high 33 points to go with 16 rebounds, three assists and three blocks against Cleveland on Feb. 27, becoming only the second player in franchise history to record those minimums in a single game (Bob Lanier). The Sharon Hill, Pa. native capped the week off with 16 points, 10 rebounds and two steals, helping Detroit defeat the Orlando Magic on March 1.

A first-time NBA All-Star this season, Duren is averaging a career-high 18.5 points while shooting 63.1% from the field, 10.7 rebounds and 1.8 assists over 49 games. He joins teammate Cade Cunningham as Pistons that have won Eastern Conference Player of the Week this season.

Detroit holds a 45-14 record this season – their most wins in a season since the 2007-08 season – and are the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference.

The post JALEN DUREN NAMED PLAYER OF THE WEEK appeared first on In Play! magazine.

NBA ANNOUNCES PENALTIES FROM PISTONS-HORNETS GAME

Detroit Pistons forward-center Isaiah Stewart has been suspended seven games for leaving the bench area, aggressively entering an on-court altercation, and fighting, it was announced today by James Jones, Executive Vice President, Head of Basketball Operations. The length of Stewart’s suspension is based in part on his repeated history of unsportsmanlike acts.

Additionally, Charlotte Hornets forwards Miles Bridges and Moussa Diabaté have each been suspended four games for fighting and escalating the altercation, and Pistons center Jalen Duren has been suspended two games for initiating the altercation and fighting.

The incident began when Diabaté committed a defensive foul on Duren with 7:09 remaining in the third quarter of the Pistons’ 110-104 victory over the Hornets on Feb. 9 at Spectrum Center.

All four players were assessed technical fouls and ejected from the game.

Stewart and Duren will begin serving their suspensions tomorrow when the Pistons visit the Toronto Raptors at Scotiabank Arena. Bridges and Diabaté will also begin serving their suspensions tomorrow when the Hornets host the Atlanta Hawks at Spectrum Center.

The post PENALTIES FROM PISTONS-HORNETS GAME ANNOUNCED appeared first on In Play! magazine.