After five seasons with J.B. Bickerstaff as head coach, the Cavs fired him following the 2023-24 season. Cleveland had an extensive search for their next head coach and hired Kenny Atkinson.
In his first season as head coach of the Cavaliers, the team went 64-18. That was the best record in the Eastern Conference, and Cleveland is the #1 seed in the East playoffs. On Monday evening, Kenny Atkinson was named the 2024-25 NBA Coach of the Year. He’s had an incredibly successful first season with Cleveland.
Kenny Atkinson is the 2024-25 Coach of the Year
YOUR 2024-25 NBA COACH OF THE YEAR, KENNY ATKINSON. #LetEmKnow
FULL DETAILS: https://t.co/b7igQ6rWc0 pic.twitter.com/Xlzvujdfbc
— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) May 5, 2025
ESPN’s Brian Windhorst noted that Cleveland’s Kenny Atkinson received 59 of the 100 first-place votes for NBA Coach of the Year. He beat out Pistons’ first-year head coach J.B. Bickerstaff, who received 31 first-place and 44 second-place votes. Houston’s Ime Udoka came in third with seven first-place votes. This was Kenny Atkinson’s first season as a head coach since 2019-20, when he was fired by the Brooklyn Nets. From 2020-21 through 2023-24, Atkinson was an assistant head coach.
After a lengthy search, the Cavs decided to hire Kenny Atkinson as their next head coach. His biggest selling point ot the team was his ability to maximize the roster the team had already built. Cleveland was a 48-win team in the 2023-24 regular season. Atkinson helped Cleveland take a massive step forward in their team progression, winning 64 games in 2024-25. The Cavaliers thrived as a team in the regular season, and Atkinson had them prepared each night.
On top of winning the NBA Coach of the Year, Kenny Atkinson also won the National Baloncesto Coaches Association’s Coach of the Year award. This is a separate award that is voted on by only NBA coaches. Kenny Atkinson was honored to win this award, knowing his peers voted for him. While Coach of the Year is a high honor, the Cavs have a team goal. They want to make a run to the NBA Finals. Cleveland lost Game 1 of the East semi-finals, and Game 2 is Tuesday night.