The Cleveland Cavaliers have hired Sidney Lowe as an Assistant Coach, Cavaliers General Manager Koby Altman and Head Coach J.B. Bickerstaff announced today from Cleveland Clinic Courts.
Lowe has been on the coaching sidelines for nearly three decades and returns to Cleveland where he was an assistant coach for five seasons under Mike Fratello from 1994-1999. Over that stretch, he was part of a staff that helped the Cavaliers garner three playoff appearances (1995, 1996, 1998). The Washington, DC, native and former NBA point guard was most recently an assistant coach with the Detroit Pistons for the past three seasons (2018-2021), including an NBA postseason berth in 2019.
“Sidney brings a wealth of coaching experience and familiarity to our staff,” said Bickerstaff. “He is a great teacher of the game and his ability to build lasting relationships across the board is integral to the growth of our overall culture here in Cleveland. Sidney also brings all of the character traits we value as a human being – loyalty, trust and integrity. I look forward to working with him and building something special together with our young and talented roster.”
Lowe began his coaching career with the Minnesota Timberwolves in 1992, when he became an assistant coach under then-head coach Jimmy Rodgers. He was promoted to head coach midway through the 1992-93 season and remained in the position through the 1993-94 season. Following five years as an assistant with Cleveland (1994-1999) and one with Minnesota (1999-2000), Lowe was named head coach of the Vancouver Grizzlies in 2000 and remained at the helm until 2002-03. He was the lead assistant to head coach Flip Saunders staff in Detroit during the 2005-06 season, a year the team advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals. Lowe also served as head coach at his alma mater, North Carolina State (2006-11), where in his first season he became the third coach in school history to win 20 games and defeat the three other ACC North Carolina institutions (North Carolina, Duke and Wake Forest). After coaching at NC State, Lowe returned to the NBA and spent three seasons as an assistant with the Utah Jazz (2011-2014), two with the Timberwolves (2014-2016) and two with the Washington Wizards (2016-2018).
As a player, Lowe was originally selected by the Chicago Bulls with the first pick of the second round (25th overall) in the 1983 NBA Draft and spent four seasons with Indiana, Detroit, Atlanta, Charlotte and Minnesota. He also competed in the Continental Basketball Association, leading the Albany Patroons and Tampa Bay Thrillers to CBA titles. Lowe played college basketball under the late Jim Valvano at North Carolina State, earning Final Four All-Tournament honors while helping lead the Wolfpack to the 1983 NCAA Championship.
