CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Cleveland Cavaliers coach J.B. Bickerstaff has made waves around the league by leading a resurgent charge in Cleveland.
While some may be just finding out about his coaching ability, Hall of Famer Dikembe Mutombo is happy to see a longtime friend’s son climbing up the coaching ladder.
Mutombo was drafted for the Denver Nuggets in 1991 by Bickerstaff’s father, Bernie, who now holds an front office role with the Cavaliers. Since that night, he’s been a close friend of the family and is now a fan of one of the league’s young coaches.
The first time Mutombo saw the younger Bickerstaff he was just a kid with a dream.
“I’m very happy with the Cleveland Cavaliers,” Mutombo told cleveland.com during an All-Star event on Friday. “They have a young man I knew when he was 12 years old. I’m very close to the family, and so I’m happy with his success. I was able to express that to his father last week when I saw him last week in Washington, D.C.”
Still adapting to his new role, J.B. Bickerstaff weathered a 22-50 record last season as Cleveland finished 13th in the Eastern Conference. Those growing pains seem like 10 years ago with the 2021-22 team holding a 35-23 mark, fourth place in the Eastern Conference. The Cavaliers are easily the NBA’s biggest surprise, But Mutombo is not surprised at the growth of the man at the helm.
“The coach has showed the world he deserves to be where he is,” Mutombo said. “Young men are listening to him, and they are following his direction.”
Mutombo attended the National Basketball Retired Players Association Media Day on Friday afternoon. The organization’s Cleveland chapter president is Cavaliers legend and current radio analyst Jim Chones, who has a front row seat to Bickerstaff’s evolution and fit in Cleveland.
“He’s the right coach for the right time,” Chones said. “These are young players. It takes a different type of coach. Player development is fundamental because they are still developing, and look, they can be as talented as any pro players, LeBron and everything. I’m talking about heart. We’ve got 17 and 18 year olds that can do the same thing. The denominator is they don’t have experience, so you need a teacher.”
Bickerstaff has been just that. His core remain largely of college age. They are young, entertaining and hungry. Gone is the narrative that Cleveland can’t do anything without LeBron James.
This team leads the league in fun. But they also might lead it in chemistry. A crucial component that has been troublesome for championship-caliber teams like the Brooklyn Nets and Philadelphia 76ers. No one wants out of Cleveland.
“The secret to this group, after you have done the upgrade and all of the talent, is that you really have to look at why they are as good as they are, this early. It’s chemistry, playing together and all those things you learned at CYO ball,” Chones said. “Pass the ball, play for each other, When you look at other players, can they play with a player? All those are fundamentals.”
Mutombo looks forward to seeing what the Cavaliers are able to accomplish in the final weeks of the season.
“They have shown the world they deserve to be where they are now, and they have a great will to go much farther,” Mutombo said. “They are young men; I am very happy with this team. They have a little bit surprised everybody, because when you talk about Cleveland, you think about that team belonged to LeBron, and then you know LeBron was gone, and they became a lottery draft pick team.”
“But they kind of surprised everybody, you know. When you get a great coach, you get a great mindset with a great group of talented young players, the chance for you to succeed is higher.”
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