Cavaliers’ Kenny Atkinson is NBA Coach of the Year

Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson was named the NBA's Coach of the Year on Monday following a standout debut season with the franchise.

The 57-year-old guided the Cavaliers to the top seed in the Eastern Conference, finishing the regular season with a 64-18 record. Cleveland’s dominant campaign included multiple historic achievements under Atkinson’s leadership.

He became the third coach in Cavaliers history to earn the league’s top coaching honor, joining Bill Fitch (1975-76) and Mike Brown (2008-09).

Cleveland also became just the second team in NBA history to record three separate winning streaks of 12 or more games in a single season. That stretch featured a 15-game winning streak to open the year, tying the second-best season start in league history.

Atkinson earned 59 of 100 possible first-place votes in a media panel, edging out Detroit Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff and Houston Rockets’ Ime Udoka for the award.

Cleveland swept Miami in the opening round of the playoffs before dropping Game 1 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series against Indiana on Sunday.