J.B. Bickerstaff hoping to maximize Cleveland Cavaliers’ final 28 games, plans to experiment with lineups and roles

Cleveland Cavaliers introduce their draft picks, Darius Garland and Dylan Windler, June 21, 2019

Cleveland Cavaliers head coach J.B. Bickerstaff has plenty of new ideas for the final 28 games. (John Kuntz, cleveland.com)cleveland.com

INDEPENDENCE, Ohio -- The Cleveland Cavaliers don’t have much to play for over the final 28 games. The worst team in the Eastern Conference, they already know they won’t be fighting for a playoff spot.

So, now that he’s in charge, one of J.B. Bickerstaff’s most important tasks is finding a way to make the final few months of the regular-season slog count. It will be his responsibility to keep the guys motivated and competitive, making the most out of this time and not allowing them to simply play out the string while counting down the days until April 15 -- the last game.

Bickerstaff already has a few ideas on how to do that.

“The focus is on who we are mentally and physically -- what our makeup is,” Bickerstaff said. “Every night we step on the floor, our goal is to be the most competitive team and the most unselfish team. What that results in, we’ll see. You kind of have an idea of what’s next and what works and what doesn’t work. This is not going to be a complete turnaround of what we’re doing offensively and defensively. It’ll be small changes that we think can be helpful. "

One tweak will be with the coaching staff. Bickerstaff isn’t adding anyone. He believes in the group and thinks bringing in someone new with just 28 games remaining would create unnecessary chaos. Instead, he’s having everyone slide over one spot. Antonio Lang -- in his first season with the Cavs, who does plenty of work with the Cavaliers’ bigs and prepares scouting reports from time to time -- will be the lead assistant Friday night against the Wizards.

After John Beilein’s resignation on Wednesday night, the message was about everyone picking up the slack. There’s an open seat on the front of the bench. Bickerstaff’s plan is to rotate Lindsay Gottlieb and J.J. Outlaw -- depending on who has the scout responsibilities on that specific night. Gottlieb has prepared the report on Washington, so she will get the first crack -- a huge step in her young NBA journey.

“I’m sure she’ll be good,” Bickerstaff said. “She keeps us calm. She’s good at that. She is extremely intelligent and perceptive. She sees things from a vantage point that’s extremely helpful. I tend to see things from just a straightforward kind of bonehead way, and she takes that same situation and she gives me the opposite side of it all the time, in a way that is always helpful. She’s extremely calming in those situations where emotions run high. I’ve never seen her get flustered or get upset. So, she’s great to have around, because she sees the big picture, even in the short term. She doesn’t let herself get stuck here, she always sees what’s going on further down the line.”

Before every game, Gottlieb works with swingman Alfonzo McKinnie. The two, along with assistant Jay Shunnar, go through a variety of shooting drills, as well as pick-and-pop actions. It’s something that happens throughout the NBA. Each coach is responsible for overseeing the development of at least one player. Lang has Ante Zizic and Larry Nance Jr. Player development ace Mike Gerrity works with Cedi Osman and Collin Sexton. Bickerstaff immediately volunteered for Kevin Porter Jr., seeing potential that he could extract. Dan Geriot has Tristan Thompson. Outlaw works with Darius Garland -- the two even have a choreographed post-workout handshake.

But Friday will be something a bit different. That will be a theme over the final 28 games.

While Bickerstaff said he won’t alter the starting lineup or make sweeping changes to the rotation, he will continue to experiment. It’s the only way for the franchise to get answers heading into an important summer.

“Are there things that we can do to be creative? Like you talk about K.P., can he play the point? Can we put the ball in his hand and let him initiate some stuff? Those types of things,” Bickerstaff said. “What do we look like when we’re small ball? What do we look like when we’re big? Can (Andre Drummond) and Tristan play together, and what can we do with that and how does that help us defensively? And then how do you work with their spacing offensively? So those are things that we’ve talked about, but right now we’re trying to just be steady and take baby steps. But once we feel like we’ve got our footing underneath us, then we’ll start to play with one of those things.”

If the Cavs want to play small, Bickerstaff pointed to a lineup of Nance or Kevin Love at the 5, with Osman and Porter manning the two other frontcourt spots. If big is required, Cleveland could play Nance at the 3, something that’s happened for short bursts over the last few games, and mix up the backcourt pairing -- even trying Porter at the 1 to give a typically tiny guard spot a bit more length, bulk and athleticism.

“He sees the floor at a high level,” Bickerstaff said of the talented rookie. “I think quickly he can grow in that area and his elite playmaking ability can go to another level. So, we’re going to give him a shot to do a ton, we’re going to put the ball in his hands, we’re going to ask him to score, we’re going to ask him to facilitate. And I think that’s where the experience will kick in for him is just seeing the same thing over and over again, and then seeing a different defense the next night, and how do you make an adjustment from one night to the next and him playing these minutes and having the opportunity is going to help him.”

Bickerstaff didn’t see this coming. Not this soon anyway. He was on vacation in the Caribbean when news about Beilein’s likely departure hit. But even though the succession plan has gone into effect before anyone imagined, Bickerstaff came to Cleveland in large part because he anticipated eventually taking over for Beilein. It was an agreement essentially built into his contract after conversations with both Beilein and general manager Koby Altman in the off-season.

This is Bickerstaff’s job. No interim tag like Houston and Memphis. No plans of another lengthy coaching search this offseason. No added pressure to every game. No fighting for his career. No need to make hard decisions with short-term thinking.

He has full backing of the front office, staff and players. He wants to make the most of this opportunity, continue to build on some of what Beilein accomplished in his brief stint while also adding his own unique touch.

“Guys are energized. They’re refreshed. They’ve had some time away so we can come in here with a clear mind and try to put a focus on these last 28,” Bickerstaff said. “There’s still a lot for us to be had in these last 28 games. There’s individual growth. There’s team growth. There’s the ability to lay the foundation of what we think we can look like moving forward.

"So I think it’s a great opportunity for guys to get together, play together and continue to build camaraderie. When you look at teams that are successful, there’s a continuity with those teams so anytime you get a group of guys that can be together and play together and learn together, it’s always helpful for you moving forward.”

For the Cavs, that officially starts Friday night in D.C. But the mindset to move forward following Beilein’s resignation has already kicked in.

When asked why things didn’t work in the NBA for the 67-year-old Beilein, who felt it best to walk away and feels guilty that he couldn’t do more during his time in Cleveland, Thompson shifted the conversation to the upcoming matchup versus the Wizards, playing for Bickerstaff and everything that lies ahead.

“J.B.’s been a head coach, been interim head coach and has been around basketball since he’s been drinking Similac,” Thompson said. “He knows this league in and out, he knows players, he knows how to manage guys, he knows how to do relationships. He’s got basketball in his blood, so we’re excited to have him. Happy he was here and is able to coach us the last two months of the season."

Get Cavs Insider texts in your phone from Chris Fedor: Cut through the clutter of social media and communicate directly with one of the NBA’s best beat reporters -- just like you would with your friends. It’s just $3.99 a month, which works out to about 13 cents a day. Sign up below.


Buy Cavs gear: Fanatics, Nike, Amazon, Lids

Buy Cavs tickets: StubHub, SeatGeek, Ticketmaster

Stream Cleveland games live: Hulu + Live, Sling


More Cavaliers coverage

John Beilein officially resigns as Cavaliers head coach, will remain with franchise in undefined role

J.B. Bickerstaff to replace John Beilein as head coach: Get to know the Cavs’ newest coach

How Beilein’s coaching tenure with Cavaliers crumbled so quickly: Chris Fedor

Beilein leaves mark with emotional goodbye in Cavaliers’ film room following resignation

Beilein does the right thing by admitting NBA was the wrong fit: Pluto

All-time Cleveland Cavaliers coaching list and records, from Bill Fitch to J.B. Bickerstaff

If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.