David Blatt Accepts Cleveland Cavaliers' Championship Ring Offer
Former Cleveland Cavaliers head coach David Blatt didn't guide the team to its first-ever NBA title against the Golden State Warriors in June, but he will receive some hardware for it.ย
On Tuesday, Blatt told Bleacher Report contributor David Pick that he will accept a championship ring from the Cavaliers despite having his tenure cut surprisingly short:
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After coming over from Israel and coaching the Cavaliers to an Eastern Conference title during the 2014-15 season, Blatt coached Cleveland to a 30-11 record in 2015-16 season before being fired in January.
Cavaliers general manager David Griffin stated that the move was made due to "a lack of fit with our personnel and our vision," via ESPN.com.
While his replacement, Tyronn Lue, posted a poorer record than Blatt during the regular season at 27-14, the Cavaliers went 16-5 in the postseason and overcame a 3-1 deficit to the Golden State Warriors to take the title.
Even though his firing was sudden and questioned by many, Blatt held no ill feelings toward the organization when speaking with the media in May, via USA Today'sย Jeff Zillgitt:
"I will say this: I'm really happy for the players I coached and for the staff that I worked with and for the job that they're doing because they're doing good work. They really are. ... If you're a coach, you're going to get hit in the head once in a while. Believe in yourself. Never give up. Keep striving.
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Shortly after those comments, Blatt was hired as the head coach of Turkish teamย Darussafaka toward the end of May. ย
Now preparing for a Euroleague season beginning on Oct. 12, Blatt will have some hardware to flash, via Hayden Grove of Cleveland.com:
Considering that Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert will give out rings to over 1,000 full- and part-time workers, including vendors, janitors and security, according toย Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com, it would have been harsh had the man who coached the team to over half of its regular-season wins didn't get one too.ย
