The Cleveland Guardians know a thing or two about weathering the storm. They beat the odds to make the playoffs last season after going through one of the roughest stretches in the entire league. With that in mind, Kenny Atkinson reportedly reached out to some of their players.
As reported by Guardians Nation on X, the Cleveland Cavaliers’ coach wanted some pointers and to pick their brains on stuff like this.
“Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson has reached out to members of the #Guardians about weathering a midseason rough stretch. Last season, the Guardians endured a 10-game losing streak but bounced back en route to a playoff spot. Now experiencing a down stretch of their own, the Cavs’ head coach has sought advice on how to handle situations like this,” Guardians Nation posted on X.
The Guardians endured a 10-game losing streak and then closed out the season on a high note. Despite winning just nine games in June, they rallied from behind to overcome a 15.5-game deficit to win the AL Central division, which was the largest deficit in MLB history to ever win a divisional pennant.
Now, the Cavaliers are going through something quite similar. They went from having the second-best record in the NBA last season to barely being able to beat bad teams right now, including losses to teams like the Chicago Bulls.
Baseball and basketball are nothing alike, but the Guardians clearly knew how to deal with frustration and fight adversity when things weren’t going their way. The Cavs’ locker room is going through something similar, and Kenny Atkinson must figure out how to keep his players locked in, engaged, and motivated. That was perhaps the best thing Stephen Vogt did last season.
He proved to be a leader of men, and he showed that he was the right guy for the job and should get the nod for many more years to come.
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