The Cleveland Cavaliers are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. The Cavaliers play in the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The team joined the NBA in 1970 as an expansion team and won their first Eastern Conference championship in 2007. [1] The Cavaliers have played their home games at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, formerly known as Quicken Loans Arena and Gund Arena, since 1994. [2] The Cavaliers are owned by Dan Gilbert, with Koby Altman as their general manager. [3] American R&B-pop singer Usher Raymond is a minority owner. [4]
There have been 23 head coaches for the Cavaliers franchise. The most recent head coach was J. B. Bickerstaff, who was fired after the 2023–24 season. The franchise's first head coach was Bill Fitch, who coached for nine seasons. Fitch is the franchise's all-time leader for the most regular-season games coached (738); [5] Lenny Wilkens is the franchise's all-time leader for the most regular-season game wins (316); Mike Brown is the franchise's all-time leader for the most playoff games coached (71) and the most playoff game wins (42). David Blatt has the highest regular-season winning percentage (.675) and the highest playoff winning percentage (.700). Tyronn Lue is the only coach to lead the Cavaliers to an NBA championship, in 2016. Chuck Daly, Wilkens and Fitch have been elected into the Basketball Hall of Fame as head coaches, partly due to their work with the Cavaliers. [6] [7] Fitch, Daly and Wilkens were also named as 3 of the top 10 coaches in NBA history. [8] Fitch and Brown are the only Cavaliers coaches to have won the NBA Coach of the Year Award. [9]
GC | Games coached |
W | Wins |
L | Losses |
Win% | Winning percentage |
# | Number of coaches [a] |
* | Spent entire NBA head coaching career with the Cavaliers |
---|---|
† | Elected into the Basketball Hall of Fame as a coach |
Note: Statistics are correct through the end of the 2023–24 season.
# | Name | Term [b] | GC | W | L | Win% | GC | W | L | Win% | Achievements | Reference |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||
1 | Bill Fitch † | 1970–1979 | 738 | 304 | 434 | .412 | 18 | 7 | 11 | .389 | 1975–76 NBA Coach of the Year [9] One of the top 10 coaches in NBA history [8] | [5] |
2 | Stan Albeck | 1979–1980 | 82 | 37 | 45 | .451 | — | — | — | — | [10] | |
3 | Bill Musselman | 1980–1981 | 71 | 25 | 46 | .352 | — | — | — | — | [11] | |
4 | Don Delaney * [12] | 1981 | 26 | 7 | 19 | .269 | — | — | — | — | [13] | |
5 | Bob Kloppenburg [14] | 1981 | 3 | 0 | 3 | .000 | — | — | — | — | [15] | |
6 | Chuck Daly † [16] | 1981–1982 | 41 | 9 | 32 | .220 | — | — | — | — | One of the top 10 coaches in NBA history [8] | [7] |
— | Bill Musselman [17] | 1982 | 23 | 2 | 21 | .087 | — | — | — | — | [11] | |
7 | Tom Nissalke | 1982–1984 | 164 | 51 | 113 | .311 | — | — | — | — | [18] | |
8 | George Karl † | 1984–1986 | 149 | 61 | 88 | .409 | 4 | 1 | 3 | .250 | [19] | |
9 | Gene Littles [20] | 1986 | 15 | 4 | 11 | .267 | — | — | — | — | [21] | |
10 | Lenny Wilkens † | 1986–1993 | 574 | 316 | 258 | .551 | 41 | 18 | 23 | .439 | One of the top 10 coaches in NBA history [8] | [6] |
11 | Mike Fratello | 1993–1999 | 460 | 248 | 212 | .539 | 14 | 2 | 12 | .143 | [22] | |
12 | Randy Wittman | 1999–2001 | 164 | 62 | 102 | .378 | — | — | — | — | [23] | |
13 | John Lucas | 2001–2003 | 124 | 37 | 87 | .298 | — | — | — | — | [24] | |
14 | Keith Smart [25] | 2003 | 40 | 9 | 31 | .225 | — | — | — | — | [26] | |
15 | Paul Silas | 2003–2005 | 146 | 69 | 77 | .473 | — | — | — | — | [27] | |
16 | Brendan Malone [28] | 2005 | 18 | 8 | 10 | .444 | — | — | — | — | [29] | |
17 | Mike Brown | 2005–2010 | 410 | 272 | 138 | .663 | 71 | 42 | 29 | .592 | Eastern Conference championship (2007) [1] 2008–09 NBA Coach of the Year [9] | [30] |
18 | Byron Scott | 2010–2013 | 230 | 64 | 166 | .278 | — | — | — | — | [31] | |
— | Mike Brown | 2013–2014 | 82 | 33 | 49 | .402 | — | — | — | — | [30] | |
19 | David Blatt * | 2014–2016 | 113 | 83 | 40 | .675 | 20 | 14 | 6 | .700 | Eastern Conference championship (2015) | |
20 | Tyronn Lue [32] | 2016–2018 | 211 | 128 | 83 | .607 | 61 | 41 | 20 | .672 | NBA championship (2016) Three Eastern Conference championships (2016–2018) 2016 ESPY Award for Best Coach/Manager | [33] |
21 | Larry Drew [34] | 2018–2019 | 76 | 19 | 57 | .250 | — | — | — | — | ||
22 | John Beilein * | 2019–2020 | 54 | 14 | 40 | .259 | — | — | — | — | ||
23 | J. B. Bickerstaff [35] | 2020–2024 | 329 | 170 | 159 | .517 | 17 | 6 | 11 | .353 | [36] |
The Cleveland Cavaliers are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference. The team began play as an expansion team in 1970, along with the Portland Trail Blazers and Buffalo Braves. Home games were first held at Cleveland Arena from 1970 to 1974, followed by the Richfield Coliseum from 1974 to 1994. Since 1994, the Cavs have played home games at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in downtown Cleveland, which is shared with the Cleveland Monsters of the American Hockey League. Dan Gilbert has owned the team since March 2005.
William Charles Fitch was an American professional basketball coach in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He developed multiple teams into playoff contenders and won an NBA championship with the Boston Celtics in 1981. Before entering the professional ranks, he coached college basketball at the University of Minnesota, Bowling Green State University, the University of North Dakota, and his alma mater, Coe College. Fitch's teams twice qualified for the NCAA tournament. He won the Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award in 2013, and was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2019. Christopher Gerhman Protrayed him in Winning Time.
Leonard Randolph Wilkens is an American former basketball player and coach in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He has been inducted three times into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, first in 1989 as a player, as a coach in 1998, and in 2010 as part of the 1992 United States Olympic "Dream Team," for which he was an assistant coach. In 1996, Wilkens was named to the NBA 50th Anniversary Team, and in 2021 he was named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team. In addition, in 2022 he was also named to the list of the 15 Greatest Coaches in NBA History, being the only person to be in both NBA 75th season celebration list as player and coach. He is also a 2006 inductee into the College Basketball Hall of Fame.
Dwane Lyndon Casey is an American basketball coach who most recently served as the head coach of the Detroit Pistons before transitioning to a front office position with the team. He is a former NCAA basketball player and coach, having played and coached there for over a decade before moving on to the NBA. He was previously the head coach of the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Toronto Raptors, with whom he won the NBA Coach of the Year Award in 2018.
Keith Ramon Bogans is an American former basketball player who last served as an assistant coach for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for Kentucky.
Damon Darron Jones is a former American professional basketball player who played most of his career for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Tyronn Jamar Lue is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is the head coach of the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Lue formerly served as the head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers, helping them win their first NBA title in franchise history.
Bernard Tyrone Bickerstaff is an American basketball coach and front office executive, currently serving as the Senior Basketball Advisor for the Cleveland Cavaliers. As a coach, he previously worked as the head coach for the NBA's Seattle SuperSonics, Denver Nuggets, Washington Bullets/Wizards, Charlotte Bobcats, and Los Angeles Lakers. He has also been an assistant for the Portland Trail Blazers, Chicago Bulls, Los Angeles Lakers, and Cavaliers. He has served in numerous other NBA front office positions, and has been a consultant for the Harlem Globetrotters.
Robert G. Kloppenburg is an American basketball coach. Kloppenburg played college basketball at USC and Fresno State. In a career spanning from the 1950s to 1990s, Kloppenburg coached at the high school, college, and professional levels. From 1958 to 1976 and 1977 to 1978, Kloppenburg was head coach at California Western University. For much of the 1980s and 1990s, Kloppenburg was an NBA assistant coach with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Seattle SuperSonics, Denver Nuggets, and Toronto Raptors; he also had brief stints as interim head coach for the Cavaliers and SuperSonics. Utilizing an influential press defense system, Kloppenburg is regarded as one of the best defensive coaches.
Eugene Scape Littles was an American basketball player and coach. He played six seasons in the American Basketball Association (ABA) for the Carolina Cougars and Kentucky Colonels between 1969 and 1975. Littles won an ABA championship with the Colonels in 1975. He later coached in the National Basketball Association (NBA) with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Charlotte Hornets, and Denver Nuggets.
Larry Donnell Drew is an American professional basketball coach and former player who serves as assistant coach for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
John-Blair Bickerstaff is an American professional basketball coach who most recently served as the head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Before that, he was the head coach for the Memphis Grizzlies and has also been an assistant coach for several other NBA teams.
The Cleveland Cavaliers first began play in the NBA in 1970 as an expansion team under the ownership of Nick Mileti. Jerry Tomko, the father of future Major League Baseball pitcher Brett Tomko, submitted the winning entry to name the team the "Cavaliers" through a competition sponsored by The Plain Dealer; supporters preferred it to "Jays", "Foresters" and "Presidents". Playing their home games at Cleveland Arena under the direction of head coach Bill Fitch, they compiled a league-worst 15–67 record in their inaugural season. The team hoped to build around the number one 1971 draft pick Austin Carr, who had set numerous scoring records at Notre Dame, but Carr severely injured his leg shortly into his pro career and never was able to realize his potential.
The 2015–16 Cleveland Cavaliers season was the 46th season of the Cleveland Cavaliers franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Cavaliers won the 2016 NBA championship, the first NBA championship in franchise history. During the regular season, the Cavaliers had the third best team offensive rating and were tenth in team defensive rating in the NBA. During the playoffs, the Cavaliers had the best team offensive rating and were eighth in team defensive rating in the NBA.