Following his impressive debut campaign with the franchise, aside from a second-round playoff exit, Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson was set on ensuring his guys were acquainted and prepared for a higher pace and more demanding workloads.

Individually, Atkinson challenged the young guys like Jaylon Tyson, Craig Porter Jr., and Tyrese Proctor to be ready to play a significant part in the season. He focused on building a close off-the-floor relationship with De'Andre Hunter so the two could strengthen their basketball bond.

Atkinson tabbed Evan Mobley to be "the guy" in Cleveland over the offseason, as he shared on a summer league broadcast his belief that the seven-footer should be in the MVP conversation in a couple of years. 

The start of the Cavs' campaign was all but sunshine and rainbows. There were a lot of injuries to key guys, including Darius Garland's return and re-shelving due to separate toe setbacks, Jarrett Allen's separate finger fractures in both hands, Evan Mobley's strained left calf, and Sam Merrill's right wrist sprain. Before the turn of the New Year, Cleveland carried a 17-16 record, slotted in the NBA Play-In Tournament conversation.

The Cavs started gaining momentum afterward as the team became more whole and the young guys got opportunities, like Tyson's breakout stretch and Nae'Qwan Tomlin hitting the scene on national television. The philosophy of getting out in transition and scoring before opposing defenses were set flowed well with the faster, more athletic guys.

Still, it wasn't to the level that the team wanted defensively, so changes were afoot. Out went De'Andre Hunter and Darius Garland, and in came Dennis Schroder, Keon Ellis, and James Harden in a huge roster change. Atkinson had to adapt to his new personnel, prioritizing static spacing and the half-court to fit Harden's strengths.

Before the All-Star break, Cleveland was rolling with its fresh faces on a winning streak, finishing the first half 34-21. In the second half, it went 18-9 to secure the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference. For a team that played half of its total games with a different starting lineup and had to recalibrate with roster turnover, that is impressive.

Atkinson, leading his second postseason run, wasn't quite as encouraging. Yes, the Cavs got to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in eight years and first time without LeBron James since 1992. That is admirable and should be celebrated. 

But neither Atkinson, nor the team, should be immune from criticism with the way things shook out in the postseason. On one too many occasions, there were self-inflicted wounds that turned into self-inflicted losses. Inexplicable turnovers, ghastly free-throw shooting, perplexing droughts, and porous perimeter defense were thematic in those games. 

One could bring up Game 4 in Toronto as one example, then falling short in Game 6, when RJ Barrett sent a shot in from the heavens at the buzzer. It wasn't the hoist itself; it was leaving the door open in the first place that was disconcerting. The Cavs took care of business in Game 7, thanks to Allen's incredible performance.

In Round 2, the Cavs were in a 0-2 hole against the top-seeded, yet inexperienced, Detroit Pistons. Then, Cleveland ripped off three straight and finally looked to have that killer instinct before an inexcusable Game 6 loss at home. Yes, the Wine and Gold smoked them right back in Detroit in Game 7, but that was the difference between two extra days of rest and playing every other day.

So, the New York Knicks awaited with nine days of rest and capitalized. Of course, the Cavs came out blazing in Game 1 at Madison Square Garden and built a 22-point lead before it came crashing down. But after that moment, the mental edge belonged to the eventual NBA champions, as they swept Cleveland in the East Finals.

Atkinson can't get out there and play for the team, but he can control preparation and overall feel in a game. While hindsight is always going to be 20-20, it does feel like there was an overreliance on guys who were gassed out by the time they reached the third round. Going deeper, and maybe even younger, in the earlier rounds, even if for a stint or two, could've mitigated that.

It felt formulaic and overly reliant on the process rather than the results in front of him. Atkinson is as creative as they come in terms of his mind, but sometimes, you need to divert from the game plan and substitution patterns. It didn't feel like that happened enough in the postseason.

By the same token, there's a reason that the Knicks won the NBA Finals. Once again, the Cavs fell victim to the East's representative in the championship stage.

Though Atkinson deserves credit for getting a team superglued together to the conference finals, he can absolutely be better moving forward.

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