4 most important moments of the Cleveland Cavaliers 2023-24 season
Mobley shining against the Boston Celtics
Evan Mobley was a matchup problem for the Boston Celtics minus Kristaps Porziņģis, averaging 21.4 points on 62.7 percent shooting, 9.4 rebounds, 3.2 assists and a block per game. He was confident and hungry and showed the doubters that the behind-the-scenes work is paying off, and it was a preview of what he could be soon.
One of his finest and jaw-dropping moments of the series was in Game 2. He switched onto Jaylen Brown, tracked his dribble to the paint, blocked it and finished a lob on the other side fed by Mitchell. The emerging big also scored from the dunker spot and was more aggressive on rim rolls and cuts.
And the playmaking against the Celtics sticks out. He delivered offensive rebounds to snipers, fed teammates in the open court, set handoffs and made the skip pass as the roller.
While Mobley's offensive game still needs refining, his series against the Celtics showcased the ceiling all Cavs fans hoped to see.
J.B. Bickerstaff’s dismissal from the Cavaliers
While not perfect, Bickerstaff was far from a stooge, and the team improved under him every year. But there was some regression with Garland, Mobley wasn’t as advanced for most of the season as some wanted him to be and the Cavs believed the group was maxed out with him in charge. However, it can’t be disregarded that DG, Mobley, and Mitchell missed a combined 84 games in 2023-24. For a while before Mitchell was wounded, the understaffed Cavaliers were the hottest team in the NBA, winning 18 of 20 games between Jan. 3 - Feb. 14.
During that stretch before the All-Star break, Bickerstaff was doing one of the top coaching jobs of the year. His firing is significant because quality coaches are not easy to find, and sometimes a team gets one, but the players hate him. First, the Milwaukee Bucks’ mess is presented as evidence- they canned Mike Budenholzer last summer, right after one of his brothers died during the series with the Miami Heat. Next, they hired Adrian Griffin, the wrong replacement, and he lasted 43 matches (30-13) before his informal consultant, Doc Rivers, took over. Note: Rivers denies being the Consigliere, but The Athletic reported he was. The Bucks had the third, 20th and 19th-ranked defense during the last three months of the season under the uninspiring Rivers.
The Bucks’ stars, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, got hurt late in the year, which was the largest factor in their first-round exit. But even with Rivers getting an early start with the club in training camp for 2024-25, the skeptics can’t be doubted because his groups’ offenses were predictable in his last stops. He didn’t get it done with Kawhi Leonard (the last time he finished a season in decent shape) and Paul George in Los Angeles with the Clippers or in Philadelphia with Joel Embiid and James Harden with the 76ers.
No one will forget that Monty Williams lasted a cup of coffee in Detroit with the Pistons, too. His early stint with the Phoenix Suns was prosperous, winning the Western Conference in 2020-21. His team followed up by losing in the second round of the subsequent two campaigns, and the team did so in embarrassing fashion in 2021-22. His relationship with center Deandre Ayton, the Draft’s number one pick in 2018, was poor, the big man regressed and looked disinterested.
While coaching the Pistons, Williams started Killian Hayes, who was recently cut from France’s Olympic roster, in 31 of 42 games. Hayes was cut in February by the Pistons. And Ausar Thompson, the fifth pick in the 2023 Draft, who is a high-level defender, was with the main group for 38 of 63 outings.
Darvin Ham lasted two years with the Los Angeles Lakers, getting swept in the Western Conference Finals in 2022-23 and losing in five in the first round in 2023-24. He was replaced by frat boy JJ Redick, who has never coached aside from his volunteer work at Brooklyn Basketball Academy.
And as an earlier historical example, think back to Don Nelson’s tenure with the Knicks. He was so disliked that Patrick Ewing feigned injury and sat out games but was going off in practice. In Chris Herring’s book, Blood in the Garden: The Flagrant History of the 1990s New York Knicks, journeyman center Matt Fish is quoted saying, “They just quit on him.”
The Cavaliers new guy, Kenny Atkinson, knows all about falling out of favor with a star as it happened with Kyrie Irving in Brooklyn. Still, in his defense, the coach didn’t want to work with players as difficult as Cleveland’s ex-point guard and Kevin Durant. What could have been a booming partnership, turned to ash.
Fortunately for the Cleveland Cavaliers, the honeymoon stage is in effect and they appear to have made the right hire in Atkinson. He said what fans wanted to hear at his inaugural press conference, but for this hire to succeed, he must elevate the Cavaliers like his old boss, Steve Kerr, did with the Golden State Warriors after Mark Jackson was fired. To be clear, he doesn't need to start a dynasty to do well in Cleveland. The Wine and Gold must turn into a perennial contender with the tools on hand.