A big determiner of the Cleveland Cavaliers’ future will be their next head honcho. They need a person who can facilitate Donovan Mitchell’s scoring while practically holding the hands of Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen in terms of schemes. A lot of names have popped up in the conversation but only a few remain to be in the race. Micah Nori, James Borrego, Kenny Atkinson, David Joerger, and Johnnie Bryant are the final five candidates. But, some have an edge over others in terms of the stages of hiring.
The Cavs have started interviewing head coaching candidates, per Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports. Johnnie Bryant and David Joerger faced the front office through Zoom. These two have helped their current teams get through the postseason and have proven themselves as worthy candidates for leading the Donovan Mitchell-led squad to the promised land for the first time since LeBron James.
Joerger notably has a lot of experience in dealing with stars. He was an assistant coach for the Memphis Grizzlies during their grit and grind era. His chops for star development then brought him to the Sacramento Kings to help a rising De’Aaron Fox. Then, he handled the Philadelphia 76ers which saw the rise of Joel Embiid as an MVP and Tyrese Maxey as an All-Star.
Bryant, on the other hand, has been a big name in the head coaching market for a while. His time with the New York Knicks and Miami Heat proved that he is capable of managing a roster full of potential. The Cavs are not the only team in the mix to get him because the Brooklyn Nets are also interested. But, there are three big names who are far ahead in the coaching race than these two.
Big names for the Cavs HC role
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James Borrego is one of the best candidates in this mix. He was also considered by the Los Angeles Lakers prior to their pursuit of JJ Redick and Dan Hurley. His experience in training young talents like Zion Williamson and Lamelo Ball is his biggest advantage. Guys like Evan Mobley and Darius Garland will definitely need his player development program so that they become stars alongside Donovan Mitchell.
James Borrego is the only Cavs head coaching candidate who has visited the team’s front office members for an interview. But, he will have two competitors sharing the same status soon. Micah Nori and Kenny Atkinson have also advanced to in-person interviews. Both of them are set to conduct the meetings in the second week of June.
Kenny Atkinson has been in the business for a long time. He helped facilitate the New York Knicks’ era of Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire, gave hope to the Brooklyn Nets during the late 2010s, and even got the Atlanta Hawks the first seed in the Eastern Conference. All of this happened when he was an assistant for those teams.
Micah Nori, on the other hand, knows how to deal with struggling squads. He was a part of the Detroit Pistons rebuild that ended with a Blake Griffin-led run to the NBA Playoffs. Now, Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves are benefitting from his wits in schematic adjustments.
Who will end up as JB Bickerstaff’s squad when it’s all said and done?