Cavs back Bickerstaff despite 1st-round flop
INDEPENDENCE, Ohio — The Cavaliers got blown out. J.B. Bickerstaff held on.
Cleveland’s coach has the organization’s backing — and his job appears to be safe for now — despite a swift first-round exit in the NBA playoffs. Making their first postseason appearance since LeBron James left five years ago, the Cavs were bounced in five games by the New York Knicks.
Bickerstaff was criticized for strategy, along with his team seeming overwhelmed and pushed around by the Knicks. Cleveland’s early elimination, plus the team’s history of rash moves, triggered conjecture about a coaching switch.
However, after giving a somewhat tepid endorsement of Bickerstaff during an end-of-season news conference Friday, President of Basketball Operations Koby Altman made it clear the Cavs are moving forward with their coach.
“End that speculation,” Altman said in a text message to AP. “He’s our head coach and we have a lot of support and respect for the job he’s done.”
That’s not to say the pressure won’t intensify for Bickerstaff, who will be expected to take the Cavs further next season.
Cleveland won 51 games during the regular season and was the league’s top-rated defensive team before getting bullied by the Knicks.
Altman said Bickerstaff has been instrumental in the Cavs’ turnaround. Two years ago, they won just 22 games.
“J.B. has been through this rebuild from the ground up and he’s done a phenomenal job instilling a culture here of accountability and hard work,” Altman said. “You can’t fluke your way into 51 wins and you can’t fluke your way into the No. 1 defensive rating in the NBA. That’s coaching.
Bickerstaff is 122-125 with the Cavs. He was an assistant in 2019 before taking over when John Beilein stepped down at the All-Star break. Cleveland won 22 games in Bickerstaff’s first season, 44 games and qualified for the play-in tournament the next, and made a bigger jump this year as the No. 4 playoff seed.