The Golden State Warriors marched against the Cleveland Cavaliers to snap a two-game losing skid, and they walked out of Rocket Arena with a 99–94 win that carried a familiar undertone: the resilience of a contender, the composure of a seasoned group, and the lingering weight of Kenny Atkinson’s connection to Steve Kerr. The matchup brought back a rivalry Cavaliers fans know well, but it also opened a window into Atkinson’s past with the Warriors.
Speaking on Tony Pesta’s Junkyard Pod, Kenny Atkinson revisited his 2022 championship run with the Warriors and detailed how Steve Kerr shaped him as a coach. “You know everybody thinks it’s a smooth like here in Golden State. You got a great team, and you know, it definitely wasn’t smooth,” he said.
Kenny Atkinson talks about his championship season with the Warriors and how he learned from Steve Kerr on how to manage the ups and downs of a season:
“Everyone thinks it’s a smooth ride… It’s definitely not smooth” pic.twitter.com/luC8gy5mOq
— Tony Pesta (@Tony_Pesta) December 7, 2025
Atkinson remembered the Warriors' turbulence vividly. “I think I said it the other day that year we won the championship, I think we have a stretch where we went 7-16. We lost 9 out of 11. At one point I think we’ve lost seven or eight on two different stretches.” Those moments tested the Warriors. They also defined them. “Nothing screams like a championship season, but more like of a falling apart,” he continued. “But that’s where Steve’s experience comes in.”
A different sideline, the same Warriors lessons
Kenny Atkinson, who served as Steve Kerr’s assistant from 2021 to 2024 and helped win the Warriors' 2022 title, now leads the Cavaliers after replacing J.B. Bickerstaff in 2024. He guided the Cavaliers to a 64–18 record and claimed NBA Coach of the Year honors in 2025. But this season tells a harsher story. The Cavaliers sit eighth in the East at 14–11 and have dropped six of their last 10.
Even so, Atkinson carries his former Warriors mentor's steadiness. “A lot of these seasons can go up and down and how it can change. So I’ve been a lot more calm,” he said. Then, one more truth: “Maybe if it was 10 years ago when I was first coaching, I’d probably be a lunatic right now and yelling at the guys.”
If calm brings clarity, how far can Cleveland climb once the storm settles?
