Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson has been named the 2024-25 National Basketball Coaches Association Coach of the Year, as voted on by his peers.
“Kenny Atkinson has long been respected by his peers as an innovative and humble servant to the game,” Pacers coach and NBCA president Rick Carlisle said in a statement. “Congratulations to Kenny on a historic season along with this prestigious recognition by his peers.”
Cleveland posted a 64-18 record this season marking the first time the team has won 60 or more games without LeBron James on its roster in franchise history. Their 16 win improvement from last year vaulted them to the top seed in the Eastern Conference where they’ll enjoy home court advantage this postseason.
“Coaching the game of basketball has been an amazing journey for me and my family, and to be recognized by my peers for a job well done this season is extremely humbling,” said Atkinson. “I’ve had the pleasure of coaching some amazing players over my career and I would not be in this position without their commitment and sacrifice for the greater good of themselves and the Cleveland Cavaliers.”
“I’m also grateful to our assistant coaches and support staff, whose tireless work ethic allows me to coach to my highest potential. Individual accolades are special, but I must give a ton of credit to Koby Altman for assembling the collection of talent we have in Cleveland. A special thank you as well to Dan Gilbert for consistently providing incredible resources and assistance in our chase for NBA Championships.”
Cleveland took a massive step forward offensively this season under Atkinson, as they led the league in offensive rating at 121.0 and were the only team to finish top two in both field goal percentage and three-point percentage. Overall, the team finished top 3 across the league in multiple categories including:
-Third in net rating (9.2)
-First in points per game (121.9)
-First in offensive rating (121.0)
-First in effective field goal percentage (57.8)
-First in true shooting percentage (60.7)
-Second in field goal percentage (49.1)
-Second in three-point field goal percentage (38.3)
-Second in three-point field goals made per game (15.9)
-Second in points per game differential (9.5)
“Kenny Atkinson is extremely deserving of this award and the recognition from his fellow head coaches,” said David Fogel, NBCA Executive Director and General Counsel. “Coach Atkinson’s hard work, dedication to his players, and ability to empower, led the Cavs to one of the greatest regular seasons by a coach in their first season with a new team. Congratulations to Coach Atkinson, the Cavaliers Assistant Coaches, and the entire organization on winning the Michael H. Goldberg NBCA Coach of the Year Award.”
Other coaches receiving votes were J.B. Bickerstaff (Pistons), Mark Daigneault (Thunder), Michael Malone (Nuggets) and Ime Udoka (Rockets). Ironically Malone, who was the winningest coach in Nuggets history, was relieved of his duties with only 3 games remaining in the regular season. Nevertheless, he was still received votes from his peer group for the work he did in Denver, despite the wholesale turnover orchestrated by ownership.
Cleveland opens their first round series vs. Miami on Sunday evening at 7pm ET.
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