The Cleveland Cavaliers signed former head coach Luke Walton to a five-year deal to assist Cleveland head coach J.B. Bickerstaff on the bench on Tuesday afternoon, per a report from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
This move isn’t a bad one like it may initially seem to be after his stints with the Los Angeles Lakers and the Sacramento Kings. He never broke .500 in his five-plus years as a head coach, including a season with LeBron James. James’ injury ailments played into that some, in fairness.
However, there is much more to this Cavs signing, as there always is with coaching staff changes.
Walton, who finished out his playing career with the Cavs, spent the first two years of his coaching career as an assistant to head coach Steve Kerr on the Golden State Warriors, a team the Cavaliers are very familiar with. There Walton won a championship and helped lead the Warriors to their infamous 73-9 season.
During that season, Kerr had to be sidelined, so Walton took the temporary mantle of head coach, leading the Warriors to a 39-4 start to the season, one of the best in NBA history.
Luke Walton likely learned quite a bit of how to create a game plan on offense from his time working with Steve Kerr.
He showcased this a little bit as he became a head coach, helping Kyle Kuzma get his career going with a hot start. He also helped develop numerous players, including Lonzo Ball and De’Aaron Fox.
Ball mostly saw his growth show in-game after him and Walton separated, but Fox quickly added a pull-up game to his arsenal only a couple years into his time with coach Walton.
The Cleveland Cavaliers have a similar build to the teams that Walton has coached before, that being a young team with a star point guard in Darius Garland.
The defensive prowess of J.B. Bickerstaff was great last season, but his offense struggled at times. Making it difficult for the Cavs to win if the other team was making tough shots.
The Cavaliers finished last season ranked fifth in defensive rating, even with Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen missing significant time. However, they finished 20th in offensive rating, leaving a clear mark on where they need to improve.
That is what makes this signing interesting, as Walton has a knack for making good gameplans on offense. He’s no Mike D’Antoni or even Steve Clifford, but if he is given the ability to only focus on offense, he could shine in that role.