Atkinson’s Cavs stay hot, knocking off the Warriors to go 10-0

CLEVELAND – Kenny Atkinson couldn’t help but smile as he looked at the score and record for his Cleveland Cavaliers.

His first season as coach went perfectly.

“10-0 is something. It’s kind of a magic number, right?” Atkinson said. “I was worried tonight because the Warriors are champions. That surprised me, how ready we were, how hungry we were. 10-0 is really something for our team.”

Darius Garland scored 27 points and Evan Mobley 23 as the Cavaliers defeated the Golden State Warriors 136-117 on Friday night, becoming the first team in NBA history to win its first 10 games and score at least 110 points in each of them . The Cavs are also the first team since the 2015-16 Warriors to start 10-0.

Atkinson’s high-powered offense is a great fit for Cleveland, which leads the league with 124.5 points per game and a .526 field goal percentage.

Under current Detroit coach JB Bickerstaff, the Cavaliers averaged 112.6 points and shot .479 from the field last season with the same top nine players on their roster. In the second round of the playoffs they lost to eventual champions Boston.

The only significant change general manager Koby Altman made was hiring Atkinson after he spent three years as an assistant under Steve Kerr with the Warriors.

“It was a great job, just like mine 10 years ago, and it’s the perfect place for Kenny,” Kerr said. “The continuity was already there and last year they were bloody good, but Kenny added his touch. He’s obviously a good fit.”

Atkinson’s fast-paced style quickly won over the face of the franchise, All-Star shooting guard Donovan Mitchell. Atkinson had previously worked with current Cavs players Jarrett Allen and Caris LeVert during his time as head coach in Brooklyn, which made the transition even smoother.

Capitalizing on Cleveland’s strength also paid off in the best start in franchise history. Ten players average at least 15 minutes per game, but none log more than 30.

“We play fast and we play right,” said backup guard Ty Jerome, who scored a season-high 20 points against Golden State. “Everyone shoots and everyone has fun. And the unselfishness of Donovan and Darius allows us to play like that.”

On a night when the Cavaliers built a 41-point halftime lead of 83-42 – the eighth-largest lead in the NBA’s shot clock era – and tied the team record for points in a half, several players noted that they still hadn’t managed to reach their potential.

Cleveland has outrebounded its opponent in every game, but has only won the rebounding battle four times. The Cavs also committed 19 turnovers that led to 30 points against the Warriors.

“That’s the thing – we still have a long way to go and a lot of cleaning up to do, which is great,” Allen said. “We know we can do better and we won’t stop working until we achieve that goal. Kenny is one of the best coaches in the league and it shows.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.