The Cavaliers have made the first major decision of a franchise-changing offseason.
ESPN.com is reporting that Cleveland plans to hire Kenny Atkinson as the team’s next head coach after firing J.B. Bickerstaff in the offseason.
The move may come as a bit of a surprise, as former Hornets coach James Borrego was considered the front-runner for the position.
Bickerstaff was fired despite leading the Cavaliers to the second round of the NBA playoffs in 2018 for the first time since LeBron James left the team for the Lakers.
The Cavaliers lost in five games to the eventual champion Boston Celtics.
The Cavaliers will have to decide whether star guards Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland can coexist and whether that duo is the future of the franchise.
Atkinson, a Long Island native, served as the Nets’ head coach in 2020 and was an assistant with the Clippers and Warriors after being fired by Brooklyn.
