Cavs notes: What's in a name? Coach works just fine for Greg Buckner

The Cavaliers had a different head coach Wednesday night when they hosted the Chicago Bulls at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, and center Jarrett Allen didn't know his first name until a media member used it. J.B. Bickerstaff missed the game due to personal reasons — he's expected to be back Friday when the Cavs play in Charlotte — so assistant Greg Buckner was in charge of the team against the Bulls. "I didn't even know his name was Greg," Allen said following the team's morning shootaround. "We call him Buck." The laid-back Buckner, 44, was not surprised to learn that. "There's only about two people in the world that don't call me Buck," he said. "That's my mom and my wife." The Cavs, who entered Wednesday's game 20-37 and losers of three straight, five of their last six and 10 of their last 13, took the coaching change in stride. "We're all a team," Allen said. "We're all one group. We all speak the same message." Buckner, who played for and coached with Bickerstaff prior to coming to the Cavs this season, was previously an assistant with the Houston Rockets and Memphis Grizzlies. The former 6-foot-4 guard played for Dallas, Philadelphia, Denver, Minnesota and Memphis in a 10-year NBA career, averaging 5.0 points after being chosen by the Mavericks with the 53rd pick in the 1998 draft. "This is still Coach Bickerstaff's show," Buckner said. "We're going to do it how he wants it done. "(Bickerstaff's) advice was don't get comfortable. This is his seat and he's coming back to get it next game." Bad news Cavs swingman Dylan Windler, who has appeared in just 31 games in two years with the team after being taken with the 26th pick in the 2019 draft, underwent surgery on his left knee Tuesday at Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago. The surgery was done to address ongoing patella tendinopathy concerns. The Cavs said in a news release that Windler will be out indefinitely, but since there are only 14 games left in the regular season, he's likely done for 2020-21. "Spirit-wise, I'm pretty sure he's down," Buckner said. Patella tendinopathy is a source of anterior knee pain found most often in male athletes between the ages of 15 and 30 who are involved in sports that require a lot of jumping and/or put a heavy load on the patellar tendon. Technically still a rookie because he missed all of the 2019-20 season with a stress reaction in his lower left leg, the 24-year-old Windler was averaging 5.1 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.1 assists while shooting .438 from the field, including .338 on 3-pointers. He last played March 26. "He's still young," Buckner said. "He still has a chance to have an amazing career when it comes to the NBA. He just has to get his body healthy." Weighing in The Cavs organization released the following statement after former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was found guilty of murder and manslaughter charges Tuesday in the death of George Floyd: "The horrific images of George Floyd's murder still ring true and clear in our minds and today's verdict represents an important measure of justice for he and his family. We will continue our deep desire and commitment to see and support equality, compassion, respect, unity, healing and peace for all. Especially in moments when it might be the most difficult to achieve." Re-signed The Cavs signed forward/center Mfiondu Kabengele to a second 10-day contract. The 6-9, 250-pound Kabengele played in three games over his first 10-day deal. The No. 27 pick in the 2019 NBA Draft entered Wednesday averaging 1.9 points in 38 career games. Tip-ins In addition to Bickerstaff and Windler, the Cavs were without guard Damyean Dotson (knee), while the Bulls were minus All-Star and leading scorer Zach LaVine (health and safety protocols). Cavs power forward Kevin Love entered Wednesday needing 12 defensive rebounds to pass Anderson Varejao (9,255) for sixth place in franchise history, while Darius Garland needed four 3-pointers to reach 200 for his career and Collin Sexton needed seven to reach 300. Allen turned 23 Wednesday. Contact Rick Noland at (330) 721-4046 or rnoland@medina-gazette.com.