As part of a ride-along interview with FOX Sports Ohio’s Caleigh Griffin, Cavs general manager Koby Altman noted that the team is viewing newly-appointed head coach John Beilein as a “cultural driver.”
“We were looking for — and it’s funny because I’m driving right now — a cultural driver,” Altman said during his ride-along interview with Caleigh Griffin. “That’s really what we were looking for — a cultural driver, a teacher, someone that was going to be about the process of development every day and getting our team better.
“And so he obviously fit all of those boxes,” Altman continued, referring to Beilein. “But he’s also just an incredible human being, and a guy that we’ve known for a long time. He’s just an incredible coach.”
Several teams around the NBA landscape made major moves this offseason, acquiring high-caliber free agents and trading for star players. The Cavs, on the other hand, were relatively quiet, but they did bring in a new coaching staff and several talented players in the draft.
Beilein, now 66 years of age, joins the Cavs after 12 successful seasons with the University of Michigan. Known as one of the greatest play callers in collegiate history, the New York native is the only active collegiate coach to have achieved 20-win seasons at four different levels—junior college, NCAA Division III, NCAA Division II, and NCAA Division I. Furthermore, he is one of just six Division I coaches to amass 700 or more career wins.
At this point, it’s difficult to gauge what the coming season will hold for the Cavs, but it’s clear that the team is gearing towards the future. With Beilein’s legendary direction and a young roster, Cleveland (19-63 last season) will be looking to get back into contention.