Inside The NBA: Coach of the Year Kenny Atkinson discusses Cleveland's stellar season
• Download the NBA App
• 2024-25 NBA Awards: Complete coverage
• Coach of the Year Award: All-Time Winners
Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson is the recipient of the Red Auerbach Trophy as the 2024-25 NBA Coach of the Year.
Atkinson, in his first season as the Cavaliers’ head coach and fifth season as an NBA head coach, has been named the NBA Coach of the Year for the first time. He becomes the third head coach to earn the honor with Cleveland, joining Bill Fitch (1975-76) and Mike Brown (2008-09).
Under Atkinson, the Cavaliers (64-18) finished with the second-best record in franchise history and earned the No. 1 playoff seed in the Eastern Conference. He tied for the fourth-most victories by a head coach in his first season with a team.
YOUR 2024-25 NBA COACH OF THE YEAR, KENNY ATKINSON. #LetEmKnow
FULL DETAILS: https://t.co/b7igQ6rWc0 pic.twitter.com/Xlzvujdfbc
— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) May 5, 2025
Cleveland joined the 2006-07 Dallas Mavericks as the only two teams to have three separate winning streaks of 12 or more games in a season. The Cavaliers won their first 15 games to match the second-best start to a season in NBA history. They also recorded a team-record 16-game winning streak from Feb. 5 – March 14.
Atkinson led Cleveland to several other single-season franchise highs, including scoring average (NBA-leading 121.9 points per game), scoring differential (9.5 points per game), road victories (30) and three-pointers made (1,303).
Atkinson was named the NBA Eastern Conference Coach of the Month twice, for games played in October/November and December. He also earned a spot to serve as a head coach in the NBA All-Star Game for the first time.
A global media panel of 100 voters selected the winner of the 2024-25 NBA Coach of the Year Award. The complete voting results are below. The balloting was tabulated by the independent accounting firm Ernst & Young LLP.
A global media panel of 100 voters selected the winner of the 2024-25 NBA Coach of the Year Award.
The complete voting results ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/Ic00MtHPzq
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) May 5, 2025
