Cleveland native Jawad Williams added to Cavs coaching staff

Things have come full circle for Jawad Williams. Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson began rebuilding his coaching staff by hiring Cleveland native Williams on Wednesday. Williams, 42, was born in Cleveland and was a standout at St. Edward High School. After a solid collegiate career at the University of North Carolina, the 6-foot-9, 218-pound small forward played three seasons with the Cavs. His best season came in 2009-10 when he played a career-high 54 games for Cleveland and averaged 4.1 points, 1.5 rebounds and 0.6 assists. Though his NBA career was short-lived, Williams played overseas until 2022. He later became an assistant coach in Japan and joined the Sacramento Kings in 2024-25. Williams averaged 3.8 points, 1.5 rebounds and 0.6 assists in 90 career NBA games, all with the Cavs. Atkinson will have a new-look staff in 2025-26. The biggest loss was when assistant coach Jordan Ott left to become head coach of the Phoenix Suns. Fellow Cavs assistant Johnnie Bryant was also a finalist for that position. Bryant was rumored to be a candidate for the New York Knicks' job, but it appears they want someone with prior head coaching experience. So, for now, Bryant will remain in Cleveland as Atkinson's associate head coach and star player Donovan Mitchell's mentor and confidant. Assistant coaches Bryan Tibaldi (Providence College), DeMarre Carroll (Suns) and Chris Darnell (Kings) also left the team after Cleveland was ousted by the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference semifinals. The Cavs had the second-best record in the NBA last season at 64-18. Bob Finnan can be reached at rfinnan30@gmail.com. Follow him @BobCavsinsider on X.