CLEVELAND — Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson has been in the crossfire of many commentators after this playoff run. His comments about analytics didn’t sit well with many, and the team also underperformed in several key moments — including during the Game 1 collapse against the New York Knicks. The coach is going to bear part of the blame when things go sideways like that.

Yet, his players haven’t lost faith in him. At least not publicly. So much so that their star player thinks it’s “hilarious” that Atkinson is receiving criticism for how things ended.

“We’ve done something that we haven’t done since 2018,” Mitchell said. “I love Kenny. We love Kenny. We ride with Kenny, and ultimately that’s all that matters. I know he’s from Long Island, he don’t give a damn. … We’re in it together.”

Mitchell wasn’t alone in this sentiment.

“He’s the ultimate player’s coach, he gets it, he understands his team,” James Harden said. “I think he did an unbelievable job of getting me acclimated as fast as possible.”

This was a tumultuous regular season for the Cavs. It could’ve gone sideways at many points, but it didn’t. Atkinson deserves some of the credit there. And he does deserve praise for helping the team win two playoff rounds.

At the same time, when things go as poorly as they did against the Knicks, there’s going to be criticism thrown his way. That just comes with the business. That, however, doesn’t mean he deserves the most blame.

“It’s on us,” Mitchell said. “It’s definitely on us. It’s not on Kenny.”