"I like to keep the dead times": Kenny Atkinson, after the historic collapse of the Cleveland Cavaliers

The Cleveland Cavaliers suffered one of the most painful defeats in recent years in the NBA playoffs. The Ohio team let a 22-point lead slip away in the fourth quarter of Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the New York Knicks, who came back to win 115-104 in overtime.

After the game, Cleveland's coach Kenny Atkinson defended his controversial timeout management during New York's comeback. The Cavaliers only called one timeout during the pivotal run that changed the game and ended the fourth quarter still with two timeouts remaining.

"I like to save my timeouts. I didn't want to be left with just one at the end of a close game. I tried to hold onto them," Atkinson explained after the defeat.

Cleveland was leading 93-71 with 7:50 left in regulation time, but the Knicks closed the game with a devastating 44-11 run including overtime.

Atkinson admitted that the team lost offensive fluidity in the crucial stretch.

"They made really tough shots in that last quarter. We had a bit of bad luck, honestly. My only regret is that we stopped moving the ball. We were sharing it really well, and everything became too static," he pointed out.

The comeback coincided with the offensive collapse of the backcourt duo formed by Donovan Mitchell and James Harden. Together, they shot 1 for 10 from the field in the closing moments of the game, failing to make any three-pointers and recording two turnovers.

Mitchell finished with 29 points, although he didn't score in overtime and missed every shot attempt after the 8:19 mark of the fourth quarter. The shooting guard denied having any physical issues and stated that he will review the footage to understand what went wrong in the decisive minutes.

"I don't think we should overreact," Harden commented. "I have to review the game, and maybe tomorrow I'll have an answer." The veteran guard ended up taking on a significant part of the offensive creation in the game's final moments, finishing with 15 points, shooting 5 for 16, committing six turnovers, and providing only three assists.

"It's a tough situation. As a coach, you want the players to withstand the pressure and calm down the game, but everything happens so fast," Harden explained. "We have to do a better job of picking up our offensive pace and understanding what we want to do. We did it very well for the first three quarters."

Playoff Setbacks for the Cavs

The Cavaliers had already experienced significant setbacks during these playoffs. They lost at the buzzer in Game 6 of the first round against Toronto after a miraculous shot by RJ Barrett and also missed a chance to close out the series against Detroit in the conference semifinals.

However, this defeat goes directly into the postseason's dark history. The squandered 22-point lead represents the second largest comeback in the last 30 years of playoffs in a single fourth quarter. It is only surpassed by the one carried out by the Los Angeles Clippers against the Memphis Grizzlies in 2012, when they overcame a 24-point deficit.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, "Me gusta guardar los tiempos muertos": Kenny Atkinson, tras el histórico colapso de Cleveland Cavaliers