Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson believes addition of Karl-Anthony Towns can put Knicks over top
Cavaliers forward Evan Mobley defends against Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns on Monday at MSG. Credit: Noah K. Murray
Kenny Atkinson got a taste of what a championship team looks like during his time as associate head coach with Golden State. And as the Long Island native prepared for his return home as head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers, he had an idea of what he was walking into.
“I think they’re championship contenders,” Atkinson said about the Knicks. “When you add two All-Stars, they’re going to be really good and really tough to beat in the East. Obviously with Jalen [Brunson], they’ve got a great group. [Knicks president] Leon [Rose has] done a heckuva job. [Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau] has done a heckuva job. I expect to have a lot of battles with these guys. I know they’ve owned us.”
What has happened in the past may not be reflective of where the teams are now. While the Knicks knocked the Cavs out of the playoffs two years ago in dominating fashion and have beaten Cleveland in nine of the last 11 meetings prior to Monday night’s matchup at the Garden, It was definitely a case of: that was then and this is now.
The Knicks have changed dramatically. Mitchell Robinson dominated in the middle in that series and is sidelined for months rehabilitating from ankle surgery. Julius Randle is gone from that playoff series and the Knicks have two new pieces — Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges.
The Cavs may have a similar roster, but Atkinson has taken over for JB Bickerstaff. It's his first head coaching job since he was pushed out of the Nets job in the odd times that Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant were running the franchise. But Atkinson has learned since then while serving as an assistant to Ty Lue with the Los Angeles Clippers and then as associate head coach under Steve Kerr at Golden State.
While the Knicks have had a wild roller coaster ride in the first two games of being dominated in Boston in the opener and then recovering for an easy win over Indiana Friday, Cleveland entered Monday night's game with a 3-0 record.
“It's early in the season,” Thibodeau said. “The dynamic of the team is you have a lot of talent on the team, and they steadily have gotten better. The pace is maybe a little bit different, but it's too early to tell. I think the strengths and weaknesses of the club are going to be the same. And then you're always looking at style of play”
For Atkinson it’s even harder to prepare for the Knicks, scouting a group that is still trying to learn its own tendencies and has veered so wildly from one performance to the next.
“It’s really hard to judge what the team is right now,” Atkinson said of the Knicks. “They have new pieces. If they had the same pieces from last year, you’d go to last year’s tape. This is hard. It’s definitely where we are right now. I tell the guys, it’s us first. We’re probably 85-90% focusing on our stuff and probably 10% scouting.”
But even if Atkinson doesn’t know exactly what they will look like, he said that the addition of Towns can’t help but make the Knicks better and a contender for the championship.
“I'm sure every coach that comes in here says the same thing, but it makes it really hard because of his ability to spread the floor,” Atkinson said. “But he can spread the floor and shoot the three obviously, but also [score] in the post. And he's expanded his game where he can drive a close out. So when you're a center in this league and you can do all three of those things, it's really difficult.
"What an incredible pickup for the Knicks. I mean, as soon as I saw that, I said they are championship contenders because he's that good. I think he's really improved. His defense has improved since the first couple of years. Heck of a player. Heck of a matchup problem for us tonight.”
Atkinson, who was a Knicks assistant coach before getting the Brooklyn job, said that he’s learned in his time since being let go in Brooklyn. He had an opportunity for a head coaching job two years ago, but backed out after initially agreeing to coach the Charlotte Hornets and instead returned to Golden State.
“Obviously being a part of the championship team with [Golden State and being with Ty with the Clippers guys that have done it at the highest level,” he said of the learning process, “And then maybe more important than that is being with players that have done it at the highest level..
“It’s funny how things work out. You get fired. You're like, oh man, ‘what am I going to do?’ And then it turns out to actually be: it's kind of what I needed. I needed more exposure to championship cultures.”
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
