The Boston Celtics had a down season this year. A .500 record (36-36) left them in the play-in tournament, when there’s expectations to be far better. A win over the Washington Wizards secured the No. 7 seed, and a first-round date with the Brooklyn Nets. Then, Stevens didn’t do himself any favors in some circles with his comments about the Nets.
“It’s really hard to make the NBA playoffs,” Stevens said. “Those guys are the best of the best. Going into that, if I’m a fan, a general fan of the NBA, I have a hard time seeing them lose.”
The Nets took Game 1 of the series on Saturday, 104-93. They outscored the Celtics 57-40 in the second half. So it might be a quick playoff exit for Boston, and more fuel for Celtics’ fans who’d like to see a coaching change. Those same fans probably wish Stevens had taken the reported mega-offer from Indiana to return to the college game. The question for said fans, or unrelated rumor mongers, is this. “Who do you think would realistically replace Brad Stevens?”
Heading in the play-in game against Washington last week, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski squashed any questions about Stevens’ status for next season.
“Brad Stevens is going to be back,” Wojnarowski said on ESPN’s “Get Up” Tuesday afternoon. “The idea that his job might be in jeopardy is just not accurate. This is a coach who’s been to the conference finals three out of four years. They’re going [to], certainly, continue with Brad Stevens.”
The Celtics have not yet gotten over a final playoff hump in Stevens’ eight seasons as coach to reach the NBA Finals (let alone win a title). But as Woj cited, they reached the Eastern Conference Finals in three of the last four years. Even with a 354-282 regular season record, Stevens’ critics will cite a 37-37 playoff mark-pending the remaining results this year.
If Celtics look dismal at any point next season, speculation about Stevens’ job security will come back. If they miss the playoffs, or barely squeak in and exit early, a change might come. But Stevens is not going anywhere before the start of next season.
