Three weeks have passed since J.B. Bickerstaff’s Detroit Pistons eliminated Jamahl Mosley’s Orlando Magic in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.

It was a grueling seven-game series.

Making it even tougher is that it pitted two guys who are best of friends against each other. The bond between Mosley and Bickerstaff, both 47, dates back more than two decades when they began their climb up the NBA coaching ladder.

They’ve been tight ever since. Their families vacation together. Bickerstaff’s kids refer to Mosley as “Uncle Jamahl.”

The two coaches talk constantly throughout the season. — except when they are playing each other. This year was the second time in three seasons they’ve battled for seven games in a playoff series. In 2024 when Bickerstaff was coaching in Cleveland, his Cavaliers beat the Magic in seven games. That was the first of three straight playoff trips for Mosley in Orlando.

Bickerstaff, despite winning that series, was fired.

Bickerstaff was named head coach of the Pistons a few months later. He took over a Detroit team that had won 14 games the year before his arrival there and 17 the year before that. Bickerstaff has led the Pistons to the playoffs both seasons since his arrival, including being the No. 1 seed in the East this season.

Bickerstaff is rooting for his close friend to have similar success in New Orleans. Mosley takes over a team that won just 26 games this season and 21 the year before that.

Bickerstaff spoke with The Times-Picayune on Saturday about Mosley, who will have his introductory news conference on Tuesday.

What was it like going against such a close friend in the playoffs?

It’s tough. It’s not easy emotionally because typically when you have questions or thoughts, he’s the guy I run it by. And vice versa. For that two-week period of time, you just don’t have that. We make it a point to not communicate during those times, so it does become very difficult. But we are both high-level competitors and want to win, but also want to see each other be successful. As soon as it’s over, whoever wins, we support the person moving on.

What was your message to him when he was fired by the Magic?

We talk about everything all the time. I told him that his next job was going to be his best job. When you get a job as a first-time coach, you’re kind of at the organization’s whim because they have to choose you. When you go into your next job after having the success that he had, you get an opportunity to choose. You get an opportunity to ask questions that first-time head coaches don’t get to ask. It’s important that you know the people that you’re working with. Obviously, Joe (Dumars) and Troy (Weaver) have a track record. Jamahl was able to have conversations about what it’s going to look like and what it’s going to be. You get a decision in the matter. Your first time is a one-way street basically because they have to choose you. So Jamahl’s excited about this next opportunity, and he is going to dive in head first.

Were you surprised he got back into coaching so soon?

He is obviously highly qualified and deserving. He did a great job in Orlando through really tough circumstance. They never really had the roster they expected to have because of injuries over the past few years. Yet they continued to grow and continued to get better. Individually, they got better. Collectively, they got better. And he’s just a good person. He deserves success, and he deserves the things that come his way because of the way he treats people and the way he handles himself every single day.

What makes Mosley a good coach?

The way that he cares about the people he works with. His willingness to sacrifice of himself for the greater good and for the players he’s coaching and the organization as a whole. I think that’s where it starts. But then you look at his teams and his teams are always well coached. Defensively, they are always really good, really sound. Offensively, they had a plan. You had to game-plan to beat his teams. His teams didn’t beat themselves.

What type of situation do you think he’s entering with the Pelicans?

With me having built a relationship with Joe Dumars over the years and seeing Troy and having an opportunity to coach some of the players Troy drafted here in Detroit, the (Pelicans) organization is headed in the right direction. You look at the talent level on that team now. It’s a team that went through similar injuries (to Orlando) last year. They are talented. With Jamahl’s fit there with his personality and ability to coach and organize and build an environment, I feel like that organization has a chance to take a step this year.