3 things Kenny Atkinson will bring to the Cleveland Cavaliers

After a month-long coaching search that included interviewing over ten candidates, the Cleveland Cavaliers have their next head coach. It was reported by ESPN’s Adrian Wojanarowski that Golden State Warriors assistant coach Kenny Atkinson has been hired to be the franchise’s 24th head coach. 

Atkinson was previously a head coach with the Brooklyn Nets from 2016-2020, where he compiled a 118-190 record. He was tasked with navigating the franchise through a rebuild and he was successful, as the team went to the playoffs in 2019. However, when the Nets cashed in and brought in two superstars in Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, Atkinson was pushed out because he didn’t have their support.

Since then, Atkinson has spent time as an assistant coach with the Los Angeles Clippers and the Golden State Warriors. He has been with the Warriors for the past three seasons, including their title winning season in 2022.

So what exactly are the Cavs getting with Atkinson? What does he bring to the team? Here are the three main things Atkinson brings to the Cavs as their head coach.

Offense, offense, offense

Atkinson brings over a wealth of offensive knowledge that can help unlock the Cavaliers, as they have struggled to maintain offensive consistency for the last two seasons, specifically in the playoffs. That is part of the reason why former head coach J.B. Bickerstaff was fired. Atkinson will be tasked with fixing that, and he had success building good attacks in Brooklyn.

Atkinson’s offenses are known for their pace and space. There is a lot of motion and flow to the offense, and players are never standing around watching someone else work. Watching is what the Cavs did a lot of last season whenever Donovan Mitchell had the ball under Bickerstaff's system. But, the bets moments of Cleveland's season included a movement-based offense with a lot of off-ball movement and passing.

Under Atkinson, the Nets played super fast and put up a lot of threes, which is something the Cavs had a lot of success with this season in spurts but never consistently due to Bickerstaff’s penchant for slowing the game down. In his three full seasons there, Atkinson’s Nets were top five in three-pointers made and three-pointers attempted, and they were top ten in pace as well, including two top five finishes.

The Cavs have two dynamic guards in Mitchell and Darius Garland who have the ability to play fast due to their handle and speed with the ball in their hands. Mitchell specifically is one of the best transition players in the league, so being able to up the tempo can make him even more dangerous as a player.