How John Beilein’s Rapid Resignation Saved The Cavaliers

The league-worst Pistons fell to the Cavaliers by 20 points on November 12.

Cleveland played 72 games during the 2020-21 season, and the team had just three victories of more than 16 points.

Through just 32 contests this season, the Cavaliers already have eight such wins.

The head coach behind the turnaround was consummate interim head coach J.B. Bickerstaff.

On Saturday, Bickerstaff finally cemented his status as a head coach in the NBA:

Here is Bickerstaff’s head coaching resume heading into this season:

• 2015-16: Rockets (71 games coached)
• 2017-18: Grizzlies (63 games)
• 2018-19: Grizzlies (82 games)
• 2019-20: Cavaliers (11 games)
• 2020-21: Cavaliers (72 games)

He is finally going to be coaching a team for an extended time, and the 42-year-old deserves this job.

J.B. Bickerstaff Has Made This Team Into A Winner

Bickerstaff has the Cavaliers flying high, and that is no easy feat without LeBron James.

The former Rockets and Grizzlies head coach is just three wins away from matching Cleveland’s win total from last season:

• 2020-21: Cavaliers record 22-50
• 2021-22: Cavaliers record 19-13

Also, Cleveland won a grand total of 19 games each in 2018-19 and 2019-20.

When looking at the James-less Cavaliers, the last time Cleveland finished a season with an above-.500 record was 1997-98.

Cleveland’s starting lineup for the 1998 playoffs — the most recent postseason without James — was the following: Cedric Henderson, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Shawn Kemp, Brevin Knight, and Wesley Person.

Not only are the Cavs hoping to make it back to the playoffs, but they are also in search of their first playoff series victory without James since 1993.

Bickerstaff, the Cleveland associate head coach to begin the 2019-20 season, has such an impressive coaching history that he was able to help this quick turnaround.

Unfortunately, Collin Sexton, the team’s third-highest scorer, is out for the season.

He underwent surgery to repair a torn meniscus, but his teammates have filled in valiantly.

The Cavs may need to find a replacement soon to help them out.

The Cavs Will Be Buyers At The Trade Deadline

Without Sexton, the Cavs are in need of some more depth at the trade deadline.

The Cavaliers have had high draft picks recently, but they will most likely not have a lottery pick in the 2022 draft.

Darius Garland (No. 5 in 2019) is the team’s leading scorer and is averaging 19.4 points per game.

Also, Evan Mobley (No. 3 selection in 2021) is thriving with 13.8 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game for the young Cavaliers.

With the trade deadline being February 10, 2022, will the Cavaliers be ready to make a big splash?

Adrian Wojnarowski thinks that the Cavaliers could be players in the Ben Simmons sweepstakes:

All in all, the Cavaliers are trending in the right direction.

If they can add to their roster before the trade deadline, then they could be a threat to the current contenders.