Kevin Burleson remembers the long drives through the metro Detroit area in the passenger seat of his younger brother’s car.
The Detroit Pistons assistant coach was able to see “everything” – the good, bad and in-between – regarding the city, according to brother Nate, then a Lions wide receiver who had just signed a five-year deal in spring 2010 and gotten to know Detroit intimately through interactions with its fans and his business and community ventures.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementNate, now a CBS broadcaster, had the best years of his career as the Lions' No. 2 receiver during a franchise resurgence in 2011, including their first playoff appearance in 12 years.
“My brother loves Detroit,” Kevin told the Free Press. “He loves it. We have a couple of second homes. Minnesota is one of them, but Detroit is right there, too.
Detroit Pistons assistant coach Kevin Burleson watches a play against Chicago Bulls during the second half at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit on Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025.BACK IN ACTION: Cade Cunningham returns to help Pistons win 11th straight 120-112 at Hawks
“Just walking around with him and seeing how the fans spoke to him, he was really big in the city. He did a lot of local things and was really into the culture here. It was something I loved. So when I came back, I felt like I had a connection already because he was connected here.”
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementNow, the elder Burleson is helping lead a different resurgence. Kevin, two years Nate’s senior, is in his second season as an assistant for the Pistons and is one of the architects behind the NBA’s second-best defense.
That defense is the primary reason the Pistons entered Saturday, Nov. 22 atop the Eastern Conference at 13-2 after winning 11 straight games.
And, 15 years after those first car rides, Kevin is witnessing firsthand what Nate did back then regarding Detroit fans and their passion and loyalty and developing his own relationship with the city — and legacy within it — as his team is on its best trajectory in 20 years.
“I always tell people if I loved football as much as Kevin loves basketball, I would be in the Hall of Fame,” Nate told the Free Press in a phone interview. “It’s not even an exaggeration. I mean that with 100% of my soul. Not saying I didn’t give everything to the game, but Kevin has a different type of dedication.”
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementKevin and Nate are part of a rare group of NBA/NFL brothers, as Kevin spent a season with the Charlotte Bobcats in 2005-06. They're two of four sons of former Canadian Football League defensive back Al Burleson. Nate and his oldest brother, Alvin Jr., played college football. Kevin and their youngest brother, Lyndalle, played college basketball.
Kevin, Nate says, has been incredibly disciplined since childhood. In high school, he gave up soda and candy in his pursuit of playing professional ball. Before then, he would go to the garage and pop in VHS tapes of the game’s great guards — such as “Pistol” Pete Maravich — and try to take his younger brother with him.
Minnesota Timberwolves guard Josh Okogie (right) talks with Minnesota Timberwolves development coach Kevin Burleson (left) before a game against the Washington Wizards at Target Center in Minneapolis on Nov. 15, 2019.“He would be like: ‘Nate, come on, man. Let’s go work!’" Nate recalled. “Seventh, eighth grade, ninth grade. I’m like, ‘Nah, I gotta call my girlfriend.’ I just didn’t have the same type of laser focus he did, and that’s what I can appreciate about him. I look up to Kevin. He’s one of my role models.”
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementKevin played for Minnesota from 1999 to 2003 and was a teammate and roommate of current Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff. Their relationship predates college, though, as they played AAU basketball together in elementary school, both growing up in Seattle. Their careers have repeatedly intersected in the years since.
After college, Kevin’s 10-year professional career included stops in Germany, Turkey, Romania, Egypt and both the NBA and D League. When Kevin played for the Bobcats in 2005-06, Bickerstaff was an assistant coach and his dad, Bernie, was the head coach.
From 2014-17, Kevin was a player-development coach with the Houston Rockets, where J.B. was an assistant and then interim coach. When J.B. was hired as coach of the Memphis Grizzlies in 2018, he rehired Kevin as a player-development coach.
His first assistant coaching job was with the Minnesota Timberwolves from 2019-22, under Ryan Saunders and Chris Finch. He then spent three years as coach of the Houston Rockets’ G League affiliate, the Rio Grande Vipers, before joining Bickerstaff’s Pistons staff in 2024.
Calvin Johnson (left), former wide receiver for the Detroit Lions, walks off the field with former teammate WR Nate Burleson and Herman Moore after being inducted into the Pride of the Lions during halftime show of the Lions game against the Seattle Seahawks at Ford Field in Detroit, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024.“He’s one of the most selfless people I’ve ever been around and one of the most trustworthy people I’ve been around,” Bickerstaff said. “His willingness to work and help guys get better because he’s not looking for anything from anybody just makes him do the job in a pure way, and I’m lucky to have him on my staff and just be around him every single day.”
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementBurleson, a former point guard, often works with the guards and also is in charge of the Pistons’ defensive coverages. He joked that it’s “his fault” if they get backdoored, but their 109.6 defensive rating — second behind only defending champion Oklahoma City — speaks for itself.
As Nate did more than a decade earlier, Kevin is witnessing what happens when a long-dormant Detroit team begins winning games and earning respect. He’s settling into life in the Motor City and is contemplating doing the one thing that Nate regrets not doing during his playing career: investing in property.
“Knowing I might have a chance to come to Detroit, I thought it was god-sent because my brother played there, I have a connection with the Midwest and J.B, working with him again,” Kevin said. “I was excited to be here in general and my brother was so excited. He’s like, ‘Oh my God, I’m gonna come out there and support as much as possible.’ It’s been amazing.
“Like my brother said, the fans are passionate, man. They’ll ride for you no matter how bad you are, they’re gonna ride for you and they want you to be good. I love the city, though, just in general.”
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Kevin Burleson forging his own legacy as Detroit Pistons assistant
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