Wizards reportedly have spoken with Cavs assistant Longabardi

The Washington Wizards have had preliminary discussions with Cleveland Cavaliers defensive coach Michael Longabardi about the possibility of joining Scott Brooks' coaching staff, according to Candace Buckner of the Washington Post.

While nothing is official, it seems as if Longabardi is on the way out with the Cavs following the hiring of John Beilein, who has been putting together his own staff.

The Wizards removed the interim tag from Tommy Sheppard's title Friday, naming him their new general manager. Sheppard had been serving as interim GM since the Wizards fired longtime GM Ernie Grunfeld in April. Grunfeld had been with Washington since 2003. Longabardi, 46, was hired by former Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue as defensive coordinator in 2016, helping Cleveland win the NBA title that season.

In the championship season of 2016, Cleveland had a defensive rating (an estimate of points allowed per 100 possessions) of 104.5. Since that season, that number has gone to 110.3 in 2017, 111.9 in 2018 and 117.6 in 2019.

Before joining the Cavaliers, Longabardi had served as an assistant with the Phoenix Suns, the Boston Celtics and the Houston Rockets. Before heading to Houston in 2003, Longabardi coached at Towson University.