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J.B. Bickerstaff Is One Loss Away From Being Exposed as a Phony

The No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference is on the ropes against a team that was in the Play-In Tournament just a few weeks ago.

The Orlando Magic took a commanding 3-1 lead against the Detroit Pistons in the first round of the NBA Playoffs. The Pistons were supposed to be the Belle of the ball this postseason after winning 60 games in the regular season.

But as Detroit basketball fans were reminded in the first round of last year’s postseason that playoff basketball is different. Last year, the sixth-seeded Pistons were defeated in six games against the New York Knicks in Round 1. It was a moral victory for the Pistons to be there, and valuable experience for blossoming guard Cade Cunningham.

Expectations are a dangerous thing in sports, and the Pistons surpassed all of them by claiming the No. 1 seed in the East. But that came with lofty expectations as well, like getting through the Magic in Round 1, which is proving to be a difficult task for the Pistons.

Offensively, Detroit is a nightmare.

Here are their team point totals for their first four games against Orlando: 101, 98, 105 and 88.

That’s a decent offensive output if Chuck Daly was on the sidelines.

But Pistons fans are learning the shortcomings of J.B. Bickerstaff, who is the frontrunner to win NBA Coach of the Year. In two seasons, Bickerstaff has turned a floundering organization into the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference. Over the last two years, the Pistons realized they have more than one superstar in Cunningham, as Jalen Duren and other contributors emerged for the top-seeded team in the East.

It’s similar to Bickerstaff’s time with the Cavaliers. He took over a floundering organization that couldn’t move on from head coach John Beilein fast enough. In sequential order, the Cavs were one of the worst teams in basketball, lost in the NBA Play-In Tournament, traded for Donovan Mitchell, got bounced in the first round against the Knicks before barely beating the Magic in Game 7 just to get eliminated in Round 2 for back-to-back seasons.

All of that in four seasons was enough for Bickerstaff to lose his voice within Cleveland’s locker room. If the Pistons are an easy out in Round 1 of the NBA Playoffs, could his seat already be heating up in Detroit?

Winning NBA Coach of the Year is a curse. In 2018, the Toronto Raptors fired head coach Dwane Casey before he was formally named NBA Coach of the Year after an early-postseason exit.

The Pistons likely wouldn’t want that to happen, and Bickerstaff should get another crack at this with a very young roster. But losing in Round 1 against the Magic? In a season when the Pistons were the No. 1 seed and one of the best stories in the NBA? At some point, it reflects poorly on the coach who constantly invents ways to underwhelm in the postseason.

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Saba Lobjanidze's brace sparks Atlanta over Montreal

MLS: CF Montreal at Atlanta United FCMay 2, 2026; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta United midfielder Saba Lobjanidze (11) reacts to his goal against the CF Montréal in the first half at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mady Mertens-Imagn Images

Saba Lobjanidze scored a brace and Emmanuel Latte Lath netted the match-winner late in the first half as Atlanta United defeated visiting CF Montreal 3-1 on Saturday evening.

Alexey Miranchuk had two assists while Pedro Amador and Cooper Sanchez added an assist apiece for Atlanta (3-7-1, 10 points), which won its third straight match across all competitions and second straight in MLS play. It also snapped a four-match home winless streak (0-3-1).

Montreal (3-7-0, 9 points) saw a two-match win streak come to an end while its road losing streak reached four. It also finished the match with 10 men after Brayan Vera received a red card in the first minute of second-half stoppage time.

Latte Lath put Atlanta ahead in the sixth minute of first-half stoppage time thanks to an interception by Sanchez. The Ivorian striker played a ball forward to Miranchuk, then scored on Miranchuk’s return pass to make it 2-1.

Lobjanidze upped Atlanta United’s lead to 3-1 in the 50th minute, scoring off Sanchez’s assist.

Atlanta equalized in the 41st minute with Lobjanidze’s first goal of the year. After receiving a pass from Miranchuk, Lobjanidze’s shot deflected off Montreal goalkeeper Thomas Gillier’s hand and trickled past the goal line, tying the match at 1-1.

Matty Longstaff scored Montreal’s lone goal of the evening in the sixth minute.

Lucas Hoyos finished the evening with four saves. Gillier stopped two Atlanta shots.

Atlanta United won back-to-back MLS regular-season matches for the first time since May 24 and 28, 2025. They have outscored opponents 7-2 during their win streak.

Montreal lost for the first time under interim head coach Phillipe Eullafroy.

Miranchuk has two goals and two assists in his last three matches across all competitions.

–Field Level Media

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Late penalty extends New England's unbeaten streak vs. Charlotte

MLS: Charlotte FC at New England RevolutionMay 2, 2026; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Revolution forward Luca Langoni (41) dribbles the ball against Charlotte FC midfielder Djibril Diani (28) in the first half at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Edward Finan-Imagn Images

Carles Gil’s 97th-minute penalty kick lifted the New England Revolution to a tense 1-0 victory over Charlotte FC Saturday night in Foxborough, Mass.

The Revolution (6-3-1, 19 points) broke through during stoppage time after several minutes marked by defensive gridlock. The win extends the Revs’ unbeaten streak to six league games.

Matt Turner made three saves and kept a clean sheet for the Revolution, who outshot Charlotte (4-5-2, 14 points) 14-7. Charlotte keeper Kristijan Kahlina made three saves.

The Revs faced late drama when Charlotte’s Brandt Bronico was called for a handball in the box in the dying minutes of stoppage time, and the referee failed to call an advantage on the play, which would’ve counted Diego Fagundez’s goal.

However, Gil calmly sent Kahlina the wrong way and scored the ensuing penalty to give the Revs the late winner. The goal is Gil’s third of the season.

Charlotte manager Dean Smith has faced many questions about his team’s misfiring offense, and they remain unanswered. The team’s usually prolific offense struggled to create chances in the final third, and when they did, they failed to convert.

Charlotte’s biggest chance of the first half came when Idan Toklomati received the ball just 16 yards away from the goal with a clear shot. However, Toklomati slammed his shot against the crossbar, leaving the game scoreless in the 37th minute.

The two sides struggled to challenge each other throughout the match, settling for long-range, low-quality shots.

Charlotte’s Wilfried Zaha and Revs defender Mamadou Fofana had to be separated by teammates after a brief shouting match and a couple of shoves in the second half. Zaha, who then argued with New England manager Marko Mitrovic, was booked. The yellow card is his sixth in just nine league appearances.

Charlotte nearly found an equalizer in the game’s dying minutes when Morrison Agyemang headed a shot from short range. The shot seemed destined for the upper corner of the net, but Turner deflected the ball to preserve the Revs’ victory.

–Field Level Media

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Joel Embiid, 76s knock out second-seeded Celtics

NBA: Playoffs-Philadelphia 76ers at Boston CelticsMay 2, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (21) drives on Boston Celtics guard Hugo Gonzalez (28) during the second quarter of game seven of the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-Imagn Images

Joel Embiid had 34 points, 12 rebounds and six assists and Tyrese Maxey added 30 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a 109-100 victory over the host Boston Celtics in Game 7 of their Eastern Conference first-round playoff series Saturday night.

The 76ers won the final three games in the series. It was the first time in franchise history that Philadelphia has overcome a 3-1 series deficit.

Second-seeded Boston trailed 99-98 following two Neemias Queta free throws, but Maxey scored the next eight points to put Philadelphia up 107-98 with 15 seconds left.

Seventh-seeded Philadelphia received 23 points from rookie VJ Edgecombe. Paul George added 13. The 76ers’ bench totaled three points (all by Quentin Grimes.

Boston’s Jayson Tatum was ruled out of the game because of stiffness in his left knee. He left Game 6 with 4:03 remaining in the third quarter with a left leg injury.

Tatum averaged 23.3 points and 10.7 rebounds per contest in six playoff games this season. The six-time All-Star forward averaged 21.8 points and 10.0 boards in 16 regular-season games after returning March 6 from a devastating ruptured right Achilles tendon last May in the playoffs.

Jaylen Brown led Boston with 33 points and added nine rebounds. Derrick White finished with 26 points and Queta had 17 points and a team-high 12 rebounds off the bench. Celtics starters Baylor Scheierman, Luka Garza and Ron Harper Jr. failed to score. Reserves Payton Pritchard added 13 points and Sam Houser 11.

Philadelphia scored the game’s first nine points and led 30-15 following an Embiid jumper with 1:55 left in the opening quarter. The 76ers were up 32-19 after 12 minutes.

Boston scored 18 of the first 22 points in the second quarter and had its first lead, 37-36 after a Pritchard 3-pointer with 6:52 left in the first half. Philadelphia rallied to take a 55-50 halftime advantage.

An 8-0 run gave Philadelphia a 63-52 lead, and the 76ers were up 84-66 after an Edgecombe 3-pointer with 2:24 remaining in the third. It was 88-75 after three quarters.

Boston began the fourth quarter with a 16-4 run to cut its deficit to one point, 92-91, with 7:59 to play. The 76ers led 95-94 with 5:52 left.

–Field Level Media

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