Bickerstaff Criticizes Officiating After Pistons’ OT Loss in Dallas
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Detroit head coach J.B. Bickerstaff voiced sharp criticism of the officiating crew following the Pistons’ 116-114 overtime defeat to the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday night in Dallas.
Speaking to reporters after the game, Bickerstaff focused on crew chief John Goble, initially without mentioning his name. “That says to me that the referee is coming into the game not being objective,” he said, according to ESPN’s Tim MacMahon. “Night by night, this is how our interactions are.”
The coach highlighted two specific incidents: a second-quarter technical foul assessed to him while he tried to pull Cade Cunningham away from an official at halftime, and the fourth-quarter ejection of rookie Ausar Thompson.
“That’s my job, to get my player away from the referee,” Bickerstaff said of the technical. Regarding Thompson’s dismissal, he asserted that the official “stepped toward Thompson and initiated the contact.”
Goble, interviewed postgame by pool reporter Christian Clark of The Athletic, offered a different account. He said Bickerstaff’s technical was issued for “continuous complaining,” while Thompson was ejected for “aggressively approaching and making contact with an official.”
Bickerstaff concluded his remarks by suggesting one official had shifted the spotlight away from the players. “You had one guy who wanted to make the game about the referees,” he said. “That’s not what this should have been.”
Source: Hoops Wire
