Cavs at Heat | Kenny Atkinson Post Game | 11.10.2025

First of all, it looked like Darius got hurt towards the end of the first half, played in the second half, left. Just what what happened there? Yeah, I haven’t gotten an update yet. Um haven’t gotten an update. Obviously couldn’t couldn’t continue. Um took a fall there and tried to come back and um I mean just so we’ll get an update um you know here soon. But there wasn’t enough concern at halftime for that he was good to keep playing still. Um, you know, we we talked about it talked about it with medical and they um and Darius, he wanted to give it another try. Um, and then went back at it and then just just um couldn’t couldn’t continue. You were obviously ejected from this game in the second half. What led to that? Um, and I’ll just say that um it was 20-2 in free throws um in the third quarter. 20-2. So, um you know that um I’m not sure I’ve ever seen that in my all my years in the NBA, 20-2. So, um I let them let them know that I wasn’t pleased with that. Um, and they they tossed me for it, but um, I’ll stick with uh I’ll stick with my uh my protest and and I felt like I had to stick up stick up for my team when it’s 20 to2 when it’s the disparity is that great. You you got to stick up for your guys. And then in the second quarter is when the offense really I thought sputtered. Just what did you think led to you guys not being able to put a lot of points on the board in that? We played a lot of ISO ball tonight. a lot of iso ball ball wasn’t moving sticking wait you know Donovan obviously um you know didn’t have it going and and we we just kind of was watching watching him play with it too much so um but I I felt like really the story we couldn’t you know when you shoot the ball um poorly you got to get stops I I felt like we never really could stop them um credit to them um they’re in our paint uh way too much we’re on our heels skills. They were foot forward. Um we never slowed them down from a defensive standpoint when you shoot 32% from three. You know, at some point you’re going to win a game like this on the road with your defense and we didn’t do it. Hey Kenny, from the back, what was your reaction to the last play? Uh yeah. Um you know, miscommunicate, you know, I got to talk to the guys. What happened? Um, not not sure, you know, give them credit. And then I know Danny asked about Darius, but is it his big toe? Is it the same toe that he had? No, Chris, I’m not even sure. I I’m just assuming that. Um, you know, last update I have was halftime um when he said he could, you know, he’s going to give it another try and then um obviously came out. But I I I just I’m just when he didn’t give it a try, I just assume that’s that’s what it is. But I can’t I’ll confirm it, you know. Um when I talk to Steve, he looked hobbled a little bit in the first half as as you mentioned. Did did you have any thoughts of of shutting him down? Yeah, I mean, you know, there were a couple times where he was limping and I just, you know, you have to um you have to defer to the player. Um I you know I you know I have a good good trust with Darius and um you know he plays through a lot so um I kind of kept him out there. Maybe um you know maybe I should have pulled him earlier but I I I’ve you know I again I trust I trust him. We have good communication. Um but then you know it got to the point where he had to give the foul right to to stop the play and and we got him out. So hey Kenny uh comparing the last season and this season the beginning is pretty different. Uh the last year was amazing. How did you start? Yeah. Did you learn that something during that maybe it’s more important to reach the end of the regular season in the playoffs in a better way and not be that worried about what’s happening in this beginning of the season? Oh yeah. I mean, sure, that’s my job is to think big picture, look big picture and and um but I’m also um you know, my job is to get this team to improve. Um so, um you know, and you can only do that in the regular season, but I’m you know, you know, it’s a uh you know, tough loss obviously. Um they’re playing really well. Um would have been nice to come out of here with the victory, but uh you know, we’re in a good spot. We know who we are. We have good identity. We gota, you know, we got to figure out if we got DG out again. We’re gonna have to kind of reconfigure. We’re starting to get back healthy again. So, we’ll just we’ll just have to figure that out. Um, but this is the NBA. This is how it works. You know, you got, you know, it every season’s different, so this this is obviously started out different. Hey, Ken, apologies for not asking a a game uh question. I’m here to profile Evan Mobley. Can you talk about just how his offensive game has really developed and how hard he’s worked Who was that? Evan Mobley. Oh, yeah. He’s um he really worked hard this summer. Um I thought he made some big shots at the end tonight and you know go-to shots which, you know, we need to be we need him to be. It can always be Donovan. Uh especially with Darius out, he’s got to kind of take that scoring load. So, um hit a big three. um you know hit that that jumper in the lane on where and got the M1. Um so um you know yeah he he we need it from him and he’s uh he’s prepared for it. Thank you. All right, last one D. Kenny, for you when you are ejected from the game and not on the sideline and a game get as intense as this one was and as back and forth as this one was, what’s it like being back in the line having no control? It’s torture. It’s torture, you know. It’s uh, you know, it’s like it’s like watching your son play, right? Like it’s your your team and and uh you want to run out, you know, get on a walkie-talkie and tell the assistants, you know, what what to do. But they they they did a good job. It’s just just hard. I don’t I don’t envy um, you know, it’s not great position to be in, but again, I Dan, I I just felt like foul disparity was way too great and and finished that way, too. Um, you know, um, I just let him let it be known and and, uh, you know, people can judge whether the referees did a good job or didn’t do a good job. Okay. All right. Thanks,

Cleveland Cavaliers Head Coach Kenny Atkinson spoke with the media following a 140-138 loss against the Miami Heat on November 10, 2025 at the Kaseya Center.

25 comments

  1. They gave us everything they got we swung back it was a good game up until the end. I would strongly say in those moments we needed Kenny Atkinson. For those who were watching I believe Mitchell and Bryant was spit balling that final defensive play. They weren't expecting that screen to let Wiggins lose. Which was a beautiful play. Hats off to Miami, we'll see you back Wednesday.

  2. At some point the cavs can't blame the refs they gotta blame themselves. If the refs are going to call the game one way the cavs needs to escalate things and force the refs to take control. Throw a punch get into someone's face, do something.
    This team lacks the JR smith type player that will lose there temper on the court and force the refs to do there job.

  3. Anyone else feel like basketball isn’t the same sport anymore? I turn games on and I don’t even know what I’m watching. It’s just boring. G Bush called it. Cavs are soft served ice cream. We need an enforcer. Instead we got nice guy Allen, Bambi Mobley, made of glass garland etc. These guys aren’t it. Give me prime KG. Prime Kendrick Perkins. Prime Rasheed Wallace. Prime Ben Wallace. Give me anyone who will get mean and play with some actual tenacity. Instead, we’re losing to the no name heat team.

  4. Coach has not improved this team over the summer. Defense is lackluster and offense is broken. Still living off last season success. Many teams have improved, Cavs didn't…

  6. Gotta start holding the COACH accountable for team not showing up ready to play 4 quarters. Atkinson doesn't use his bigs in the post. USE YOUR BIGS COACH in the LOW POST. Stop shooting 3's all game!!!!

  7. The Cavs had 5 more made field goals than the heat, and 11 more made 3 pointers than the heat, had more rebounds than the heat, more steals, almost 25 more FG attempts in total than the heat, but the heat had 18 more free throw attempts than the Cavs had by the 3 qtr alone; in the second quarter it was 11 Cavs team fouls to the heats 5 team fouls, there wasn’t a quarter besides the 3rd (AFTER KENNY GOT EJECTED FOR COMPLAINING ABOUT THE FOUL DISPARITY being 20-2) that the heat had more or even a similar number of team fouls than Cavs had. The Cavs are constantly looked at as a “soft” team; yet somehow vs teams known for their Physicality the Cavs are “too physical”; & I’m definitely not saying the Cavs played their best tonight by any means, but they made more shots than the heat, both from behind and within the Arc, and until the 4th quarter were constantly down at least 10. That just doesn’t make any sense to me and obviously didn’t to Kenny and a lot of other Cavs players and fans. If the Cavs have as many FTA’s as the heat we win by at least 10; if the heat only have the same number of FTA’s than the Cavs we win by at least 10. Either way If the refs aren’t as involved or just called the game more evenly the Cavs win by at least 10. This game was controlled and decided by the refs.

  11. Horrendously coached game in the first half shot selection was bad, and there was an over reliance on 3s. They had a comeback in the 4th under Bryant but he clearly wasnt prepared. He just forget to ever subsitute. Get allen or anoyher ball handler back in the game. Late in the 4th and ot mitchell was dead tired we couldnt get into our offense.

    All that said to Kenny's point this was an egregiously offciated game one of the worst I've ever seen as an nba fan

  13. JOKE!! Going in to the 4th Donnie had 20p. He finished the game with 28p. Seems to me he was more focused on collecting his last 3 assists to have produced a 32.
    TO BE CLEAR……
    Donnie is my NO.1 PLAYER since DAY1, DAY 1, ROOKIE OF THE YEAR, DAY 1.
    I can not believe what
    I witnessed .
    Seriously…. THIS LOSS & HIS PLAY STILL GOT ME
    F&@;$D UP !!
    MOBLEY, MOBLEY, MOBLEY,
    MOBLEY, How many possessions in a row ??
    SHOOT! DRIVE ! PULL UP !
    DON’T be super cute with
    🐂 💩 passes to 32 WHEN THE GAME IS IN THE LINE !
    Remember your “2K” reference, WELL, WTFX Donnie??
    YOU’RE 29 D, when you gona
    GRAB THE BULL BY THE HORNS & get your ring finger sized ?
    THE EAST IS YOURS TO TAKE & THE RING PRESENTATION IS A MERE FORMALITY.

    FULFILL YOUR DESTINY,
    I KNOW YOU HAVE IT IN YOU!
    14ALL&ALL41

  22. Coach and fans complaining about free throw disparity? Cavs shot 65 threesss!!! You don't get rewarded to the ft line shooting that many threes. The refs did their jobs correctly. Yall trippin.

  23. That last play, Hunter didn't get thru the screen, no communication to switch, either way Merrill froze and Hunter and Tyson did have their worst defensive nights against Jaime, and company, maybe they were tired. But calls were piss poor by the most controversial ref in the NBA (Scott Foster, who has beef with everyone respectable). I counted at least 3 and one's Evan didn't get called for him and other several fouls on Hunter and Don and etc. I'm with Coach though on getting tossed. Evan needs the ball more tonight HE minus a couple free throws, he was legit great otherwise. Every time Garland gets hurt he turns into hero ball play, and Don followed suit. That's what lost this. Evan actually should've had 35 tonight, we didn't give him the rock enough, he had smalls on him under the rim too, watch it back, and no passes came then 😢. I agree with the comment, We need a PG like Zo in there. He helps us. DG needs to step back he's not top two option no more, IMHO and that's what is best, Coach favors him tho and I wanna see him buy in to it more with play calls. Evan didn't touch the ball after those big shots. I didn't like it. Don did hit that late late one to tie, but that's not the only attempt we got. Like Evan would've tied it earlier had Bryant not panicked taking that timeout. But ok, that wasn't the worst but you can't give a dunk up to Wiggins. Evan wasn't the fall guy minus free throws by him and Tyson missed, but we still had chances to win.

Leave a Reply