Kenny Atkinson is still proud of the Cavaliers for "taking a step" despite getting swept
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The Cleveland Cavaliers have been eliminated from the 2026 NBA Playoffs. This comes after a sweep at the hands of the New York Knicks, which is a tough result for any team, but it seems the Cavs are looking at the positives.
Head coach Kenny Atkinson believes the Cavaliers took a step forward, which is good for their development. That might not be the best thing to say after getting swept, but he truly believes the Cavs had a better campaign compared to their 2025 postseason run.
Kenny Atkinson believes the Cavs took positive steps after the sweep
The Cavaliers were once the favorite to reach the NBA Finals. That was during the 2025 offseason when they and the Knicks were hailed as the East's best teams since the Indiana Pacers and the Boston Celtics had major injuries to their superstars.
While the regular season did not pan out as well as the Cavs would have hoped, they recovered in the postseason. They reached the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2018.
MORE: Stephen A. Smith gives his take on Kenny Atkinson's waning job security in Cleveland
Unfortunately, they did not end up winning a single game in the ECF. The Knicks utterly dominated them, but getting to the ECF alone is a big achievement for Atkinson and the rest of the Cavaliers.
"I turned it into a positive, though. We took a step. This is kinda how it works, we have to keep climbing. We are going in a positive direction. Fell short, there's no bigger motivator to get to the next level," Atkinson said after getting eliminated in the ECF.
Of course, the Cavaliers are disappointed because they have a talented roster. However, it seems they need to keep learning to reach the next level, similar to how the Knicks went from stage to stage over the past few years.
It will be tough to justify this result as a positive because it was an embarrassing sweep. However, it seems Atkinson is ready to run it back with a full training camp with this roster.
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