Report: 2 Cavs vets have consistently praised Kenny Atkinson to teammates

The Cleveland Cavaliers are looking for a new head coach after firing J.B. Bickerstaff, and it looks like Kenny Atkinson could be the person the team is searching for.

What makes things even more interesting is that Jarrett Allen and Caris LeVert, who both played for Atkinson on the Brooklyn Nets, have reportedly said good things about him to their Cavs teammates.

“Two of Atkinson’s former players in Brooklyn — Jarrett Allen and Caris LeVert — are said to be consistently praiseworthy of Atkinson when quizzed about him by Cavaliers teammates,” wrote NBA insider Marc Stein.

Atkinson was head coach of the Nets from 2016 until March of 2020. He registered a regular season record of 118-190 with the team, leading it to the playoffs once during his time there.

LeVert and Allen started to make their marks in the league under Atkinson, so it’s no surprise to hear that they’ve been talking him up to their teammates.

For the past three seasons, Atkinson has been an assistant on Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr’s staff. There had been some talk last summer of Atkinson possibly taking over for Kerr in Golden State, but Kerr agreed to an extension through the 2025-26 season earlier this year.

Atkinson has been mentioned as a candidate for the vacant Los Angeles Lakers coaching job, but signs are pointing toward J.J. Redick — who hosts a podcast with Lakers star LeBron James — taking over the Purple and Gold.

Cleveland is coming off a season in which it won a playoff series without James for the first time since 1993, but injuries ended up torpedoing the team in the second round against the Boston Celtics.

The Cavaliers played their entire second-round series against the Celtics without Allen. Furthermore, Donovan Mitchell missed the last two games of the series.

Mitchell’s future is one of the hottest topics across the league right now. He’s eligible to sign an extension this offseason, but if he doesn’t agree to one, he might be on his way out of Ohio.

“I’ve been told the Cavs either would sign him to an extension this summer, or trade him,” wrote Cavs insider Terry Pluto. “They have zero intention of opening the 2024-25 season with Mitchell heading into his free agent year.”

The Cavs would be wise to get Mitchell’s approval on their coaching hire, as it might be what convinces him to stay in Cleveland for the long term or pushes him away.