The Cleveland Cavaliers are a team with an upward trajectory. They have the reigning rookie of the year in Kyrie Irving, Tristian Thompson is making strides in his game, and rookie Dion Waiters looks like he can be a nice player for many years to come.
With these young building blocks in place, it comes as no surprise that the team has decided that they want to keep head coach Byron Scott around for at least the next two seasons:
Scott was charged with steering the post-Decision Cavs for the past two seasons and has done admirable work. His record may only be 48-100 over his two seasons in Cleveland, but he’s been a no excuses coach that has not allowed his players to succumb to a loser’s mentality that could have easily swept through the organization.
Keeping him on, however, is much less about what he has done but what he can do moving forward. Scott has shown an ability to build downtrodden teams up into playoff caliber ones in his past stops. When he took over the Nets he went from 26 wins in his first season to 52 the following one. In his first year with the Hornets he won 18 games but by his fourth year they won 56. Of course, some of that was the influx of talented players, but it also had to do with the job he was doing as head man.
The issue with Scott, though, is that after a few years his style tends to grate on players. He is a Pat Riley disciple and that typically means long practices and a firm hand with his players every step of the way. We will have to see if that trend continues with the Cavs and if he eventually wears out his welcome.
But all of that is for a later date. Right now, this is about continuing to improve by developing the young players on the team. Scott can certainly do that.
