Experts’ picks: Any love for Spurs in conference finals?

Kenny Atkinson has been named the 24-25 NBA Coach of the Year, winning the award in his first season with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Atkinson joined the Cavaliers after several seasons as an assistant coach with the Golden State Warriors. Mike Brown previously won Coach of the Year in his first season after leaving the Warriors.

J.B. Bickerstaff finished second followed by Ime Udoka. Bickerstaff was in his first season with the Detroit Pistons and helped guide their turnaround to the playoffs.

It had already been reported that in the new CBA that teams above the newly created second luxury tax apron would have restrictions on acquiring players. Those teams will lose the Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception and will be restricted to re-signing their own players, draft picks and players via the minimum exception.

In addition, there will be further restrictions on the NBA’s most expensive teams. Those teams will not be able to send cash out in trades, trade first-round picks within a seven-year window and will not be able to sign players on the buyout market.

In addition, trade rules will be tweaked for those teams. Teams that are above the second tax apron, set at $17.5 million above the tax line, will not be able to receive more money in a trade than they send out.

That trade restriction could have impacted several recent high-profile deals. That includes Kevin Durant to the Phoenix Suns, Kyrie Irving to the Dallas Mavericks and James Harden to the Brooklyn Nets.