Former Knicks Assistant Hired as Coach
A former New York Knicks assistant has found his way back to a head coaching job.
According to ESPN insider Adrian Wojnarowski, the Cleveland Cavaliers are hiring Kenny Atkinson as their next head coach.
The move comes after the team fired J.B. Bickerstaff despite coaching the team into the second round of the playoffs last month.
Atkinson, 57, had a long playing career overseas that spanned 14 years, but he returned stateside when the Knicks gave him a job as an assistant coach under Mike D'Antoni in 2008. Atkinson worked under him for his entire tenure until D'Antoni resigned shortly before the 2012 playoffs. D'Antoni went off to coach the Los Angeles Lakers while Atkinson stayed on the east coast, joining Larry Drew's staff with the Atlanta Hawks.
Atkinson stayed with the Hawks for four years until the Brooklyn Nets offered him a promotion to become a head coach for the first time in his career. Atkinson coached the rebuilding Nets back into the postseason two years after winning just 20 games, but they were knocked out of the first round by the Philadelphia 76ers.
When Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving joined the team in 2019-20, Atkinson didn't fit with the vision, and he resigned shortly before the season was suspended due to COVID-19.
Since his time with the Nets, Atkinson was an assistant with the Los Angeles Clippers and Golden State Warriors, where he won his first NBA championship in 2022.
Now, he'll look to win his second as he leads Donovan Mitchell and the Cavs.
JEREMY BRENER
Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.