NEWSLETTER
Initial reports stated the Cavs would review JB Bickerstaff’s performance after the second-round series loss to the Celtics, and it appears that process has concluded.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported this morning that the Cavaliers are parting ways with head coach JB Bickerstaff after five seasons and a 48-34 record this past season. Over his five years in Cleveland, Bickerstaff finished with a 170-159 record and took the Cavs to the NBA Playoffs twice.
JB Bickerstaff Out As Cavs Head Coach
Bickerstaff led the Cavaliers to a 48-34 record and a fourth-place finish in the Eastern Conference. They fell short in the second round of the playoffs losing in five games to Boston, but they did so with a pretty shorthanded roster at times. Donovan Mitchell missed the last two games and Jarrett Allen sat out for eight straight postseason games. Were the Cavs going to win an NBA title this season? Probably not. But they gave Boston some tough games and did so without some of their key pieces.
Not to mention, this marked the first time the franchise cracked the second round of the postseason *without LeBron James* since 1993.
One has to wonder if this move is an attempt to appeal to Donovan Mitchell in their pursuit to bring him back on a max extension this offseason. Mitchell can sign a five-year, $269.9 million contract with Cleveland this summer. If he doesn’t sign, however, he will enter the final year of his contract before hitting free agency. Losing him for nothing is not a risk Cleveland will likely be willing to take.
During the regular season, Cavs President of Basketball Operations Kobi Altman was reportedly critical of Bickerstaff for playing Mitchell such heavy minutes. According to the same report from The Athletic’s Shams Charania, there was a growing belief around the league that Mitchell did not have confidence in Bickerstaff and several of his teammates felt similarly.
So while JB Bickerstaff might have gotten the Cavs to a competitive second-round series with Boston (at least as competitive as a 4-1 loss can be), it seems his loss of the locker room and belief from his players might have been the final straw along with Altman’s criticisms.
According to a report from Wojnarowski following the firing, Cleveland will put together a list of candidates for the job, but a name to keep an eye on will be former Nets head coach and current Warriors assistant Kenny Atkinson. Atkinson coached both Jarrett Allen and Caris LeVert in Brooklyn and took that group to the postseason. It’s not the first time we’ve seen Atkinson’s name in head coaching rumors in the last few offseasons, and it seems he’ll get a strong look this year from Cleveland.
