Kenneth Neil Atkinson (born June 2, 1967) is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

coach and former player who serves as assistant coach for the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. Founded in 194 ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...

(NBA). He was previously the head coach of the

Brooklyn Nets The Brooklyn Nets are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The Nets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. The t ...

from 2016 to 2020. Atkinson was born in

Huntington, New York The Town of Huntington is one of ten towns in Suffolk County, New York. Founded in 1653, it is located on the north shore of Long Island in northwestern Suffolk County, with Long Island Sound to its north and Nassau County adjacent to the west. ...

and played college basketball for

University of Richmond The University of Richmond (UR or U of R) is a private liberal arts college in Richmond, Virginia. It is a primarily undergraduate, residential institution with approximately 4,350 undergraduate and graduate students in five schools: the School ...

leading the Spiders to a Sweet Sixteen berth in the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament in 1988.

Playing career

Atkinson averaged 18.9 points per game during his senior season at Richmond and played professionally in Italy, France, Germany, Spain, and the Netherlands from 1993 to 2004. He had tryouts with several NBA teams including the Knicks in summer of 1991. He was inducted into the

Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame The Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame is an American sports hall of fame based in Suffolk County on Long Island, New York. The non-profit was established during 1990 to honor outstanding people, living or deceased, who have gained prominence and made ...

in 2020.

NBA coaching career

Atkinson joined the

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the National Basketball Associat ...

coaching staff as an assistant coach under

Mike D'Antoni Michael D'Andrew D'Antoni (born May 8, 1951) is an Italian-American professional basketball coach and former player who is a coaching advisor for the New Orleans Pelicans of the National Basketball Association (NBA). While head coach of the Ph ...

on August 6, 2008. In 2012 after four seasons with the Knicks, he joined the

Atlanta Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Southeast Division (NBA), Sou ...

coaching staff under

Mike Budenholzer Michael Vincent Budenholzer (born August 6, 1969) is an American professional basketball coach who is the head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Before joining the Bucks, he spent five seasons as head coac ...

. On April 17, 2016, it was announced that Atkinson become the head coach of the

after the Hawks' season ended.

Brooklyn Nets (2016–2020)

Atkinson made his NBA head coaching debut on October 26, 2016, in a 122–117 loss to the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of t ...

. He got his first win as an NBA head coach two days later when the Nets defeated the

Indiana Pacers The Indiana Pacers are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Pacers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The Pacers were first esta ...

103–94. The Nets finished the season with a 20–62 record, with a 0–10 record in February 2017.

Brook Lopez Brook Robert Lopez (born April 1, 1988) is an American professional basketball player for the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played two years of college basketball for the Stanford Cardinal. Lopez was selecte ...

left the team in Atkinson's second season; Lopez was traded to the

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...

in an off-season deal. The Nets were competitive for the early part of the season before going 1-9 in February, ending any chance to be in the playoffs. They finished the season with a 28–54 record, which was an eight-game improvement from the previous season. In Atkinson's third season with the Nets he led the team to a 42–40 record, winning 14 games more than the previous season, and a playoff berth with the sixth seed. The Nets lost to the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, colloquially known as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eas ...

in five games in the first round of the playoffs. Atkinson stepped down as head coach of the Nets on March 7, 2020.

Los Angeles Clippers (2020–2021)

On November 16, 2020, Atkinson was hired as an assistant coach for the

Los Angeles Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division in the league's Western Conference. The Clipper ...

under head coach Tyronn Lue.

Golden State Warriors (2021–present)

On August 13, 2021, the

hired Atkinson as an assistant coach. He won his first

NBA championship The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern and Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven game series to determine the league champion. The team that wins the series is awa ...

as the Warriors defeated the

in six games in the 2022 NBA Finals. During the NBA Finals the

Charlotte Hornets The Charlotte Hornets are an American professional basketball team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Hornets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division, and pla ...

offered Atkinson the position of head coach, but he reportedly turned it down after winning the championship.

Head coaching record

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References

External links

NBA.com Profile

Profile
at Eurobasket.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Atkinson, Kenny 1967 births Living people People from Huntington, New York People from Northport, New York Amsterdam Basketball players ALM Évreux Basket players American expatriate basketball people in France American expatriate basketball people in Germany American expatriate basketball people in Italy American expatriate basketball people in the Netherlands American expatriate basketball people in Spain American men's basketball coaches American men's basketball players Atlanta Hawks assistant coaches Basketball coaches from New York (state) Basketball players from New York (state) Brooklyn Nets head coaches Golden State Warriors assistant coaches Dutch Basketball League players FC Mulhouse Basket players Liga ACB players Montpellier Paillade Basket players New York Knicks assistant coaches Partenope Napoli Basket players Point guards Richmond Spiders men's basketball players Sportspeople from Suffolk County, New York Wichita Falls Texans players