Former University of Michigan head coach John Beilein was officially introduced as the head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday during a press conference .
Before we get to the top quotes from the conference, check out these alleged mistakes from owner Dan Gilbert – yikes!
In the first two minutes of Coach Beilien's press conference, Dan Gilbert thought Michigan was south of Ohio, forgot what colleges Beilein coached at, couldn't pronounce another, fumbled over his relatives names/location and said he needed his glasses.
— Greg Swartz (@GregSwartzBR) May 21, 2019
Via Cleveland.com:
* 11:18 a.m. – Press conference is beginning with an opening statement by owner Dan Gilbert. He is flanked by general manager Koby Altman and Beilein.
• Gilbert called Beilein an innovator and cited 20 postseason appearances with four teams in college. Beilein corrected him and said five.
“The only man alive who has five appearances,” Gilbert said to a few laughs.
• Gilbert said he noticed Beilein before the press conference talking with Larry Nance Jr., already giving him some “tips.”
• The relationship with Mike Gansey has already come up with Gilbert. The assistant GM’s relationship with Belein, who recruited him after the Olmsted Falls grad’s stint at St. Bonaventure, evidently played a role in this hire.
• Gilbert paused before presenting a quick video, shown on two TVs at each side of the press conference podium. The video displayed Beilein at a table with Gilbert and Altman, talking basketball. Gansey came up again. Asked why they played a 1-3-1 at West Virginia with Gansey, Beilein responded, “He sucked on defense.”
• 11:29 p.m. – Gilbert has stepped aside for Altman to begin discussing the search and selection of Beilein.
• “We sort of started at the end before we began with our wish list,” Altman said. “We wanted a teacher. We wanted an innovator; someone who can adapt on the fly.”
• Beilein said he has spoken with every player on the roster. Collin Sexton arrived in Cleveland at 6 a.m. this morning, and Nance was at the facility before Beilein arrived at 9 a.m., the new coach said.
• The Cavaliers are set to participate in both summer leagues this year in Salt Lake City and Las Vegas. Beilein said he plans to coach in at least one of them. He did not rule out coaching both.
• Beilein said he didn’t think he was going to experience regret if he didn’t get a pro job.
“I looked at this opportunity and said this looks and feels like the Michigan opportunity,” he said. “It was like people looked at me, ‘Are you crazy? Why are you changing jobs?’”
• On transitioning from college players to pro players, Beilein said he has listened to advice — including Jeff Van Gundy.
“We’ll certainly change,” Beilein said. “That’s how I’ve coached for over 40 years, but I’m going to try to fit this with what I’m really strong and try to adapt.”
• On the buzzword of culture: “I think what we have right now is we’re a team first. No one has more importance than the others.”
• The Cavs won just 19 games this season. What’s Beilein’s timeline and goals?
“I’m still getting my feet wet,” he said. “I’ll know a lot more as the season goes on. I’m not going to put limits on this team, that’s for sure.”
He added, “Rebuild is not a word we’re going to use here.”
• The transition from college to pro will be the big question with Beilein. With J.B. Bickerstaff just hired as his associate head coach, Beilein said they met for the first time last week.
He cited Bickerstaff as someone who will be pivotal in learning to communicate more efficiently with professional players.
“I do need to learn to speak their language,” Beilein said. “Once we’re on the same page, that’s where we can really take off..
• On the topic analytics, Beilein noted that he had resources at Michigan but not like this.
“I want to get to the sweet spot of what’s been important to me and what we have as a staff,” he said.
He wants to teach Sexton what efficiency looks like for a point guard. Beilein rattled off a stat line as an example, pointing out fewer points and higher assists with fewer turnovers could be a better game than a high-scoring night.
• Did he want to get away from college basketball with the scandals? Beilein said previous troubles didn’t spell the end of NCAA basketball, suggesting he does not expect the current climate of college basketball to hinder it.
“That’s not why I’m the new coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers,” he said.
• Beilein is the Cavaliers’ seventh coach in the last decade. Five of them have not survived without being fired. Asked about that, Beilein said it was not a factor.
A chuckle broke out among the crowd, as some heads turned left toward Gilbert.
