J.B. Bickerstaff wasn't looking to make an excuse for why his Detroit Pistons were blown out at home by the Philadelphia 76ers. Instead, Bickerstaff offered a reason why the Pistons were off their game.
"Our guys were exhausted. We sat on the runway last night until 2:30, 3 am, got home around 4:30 in a snowstorm," Bickerstaff said. "We just didn’t have it tonight and that’s fair. Today was just a rough day for them."
Detroit played on Friday in Indiana. Due to weather in the area, the Pistons takeoff from Indianapolis was delayed. They then played Saturday at home against a Sixers team that hadn't played since Wednesday. In addition, Cade Cunningham was a late scratch for Detroit due to hip soreness.
Bickerstaff also suggested that the NBA look at avoiding back-to-back games when a team is coming off an NBA Cup game. Many coaches have said that teams are going harder in the cup games, even in blowouts, as point differential is an important tiebreaker. The NBA avoids scheduling NBA Cup games as the second leg of a back-to-back but has no restrictions for a back-to-back game following a Cup game.