Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here… highlighting the big story line. Because there’s nothing quite as satisfying as a good morning dump.

“My wife laughs at me because when I first got here, [cigars were] a nice, common courtesy gift that people gave me,” Stevens told “The Dan Dakich Show.” “I was sent a couple of cigars, or people gave me cigars. And anybody that knows me knows that, if I tried to smoke a cigar, I would probably throw up on the spot. She wants us to win one for every reason, but the biggest reason she wants us to win a championship would be to see me throw up on the court once I had to smoke that stogie.”

ESPN Boston: Celtics coach Brad Stevens willing to endure victory cigar

Oh Brad, you’re so adorkable sometimes.

If winning a title involves you throwing up, then we all want to see it.

The Celtics must have a really strong feeling that Brad’s the guy to lead this team to a title because they not only extended him with three years still remaining on his deal, they started talking about it at probably the lowest point of last season. 

“The first time I was approached it was midseason, and it was a real brief conversation,” Stevens said. “But it was during a time when we were weren’t exactly lighting the world on fire, so it makes you feel even better about where you are when that happens. And so, after the season, Danny came in and we talked real briefly about it. It’s never been much of a question for me. Obviously, I’m flattered to be considered to be here. Then also to get a chance to continue to do it.”

That means it was early January, when the Celtics had lost six of seven, including consecutive ugly home losses to the Lakers and Nets. That stretch just happened to coincide with rumors swirling of some prime college gigs possibly opening up.

“I guess I was kinda surprised,” Stevens said of the extension with still three years remaining on the original deal. “Again, it tells you the way that they think and the way that they value people around here. It’s why you enjoy working here.”

For 99% of us, this was a great move. The Celtics now have one of the brightest young coaches in the league locked up for at least the next six years. The remaining 1% are either the professional shit-stirrers on the radio or people who, for whatever reason, just don’t like Stevens.

The bottom line is the Celtics have created a sort of stability that is attractive to other players. It might not be the first thing on a free agent’s list, but it’s on there, for sure. The type of top-to-bottom structure the Celtics have eliminates a lot of headaches for players who mostly just want to show up and play basketball. No one wants to go through coaching change after coaching change and learn new styles of play and management. No one wants to have to sit there and wonder if a new GM is going to get rid of players because they’re not “his guys.” And I guarantee you part of Kevin Durant’s thinking about whether to stay or leave Oklahoma City is whether the owner of the team is going to open up the wallet enough to get some better help around there… or at least keep the him and Westbrook together… or if he’s going to make penny-pinching moves and force a repeat of the James Harden trade (which was definitely instigated by Clay Bennett because he refused to be a taxpaying team).

Guys know the owners will do what it takes to win, and Ainge will make the moves he needs to make to facilitate that. And Stevens will put guys in a position to be their best… which is perhaps the most important part of this equation. He won’t do things that makes the players look stupid out there. If you run his plays, you’ll be on the highlight shows and all over Vine. That makes your star shine brighter, gives you a chance to get a bigger contract, maybe a better endorsement deal, and, yes, win. And when you do, you can pay your coach back by patting his back and getting him a towel as he yacks all over the parquet in celebration of Banner 18.

Page 2: This summer’s pitch to Durant might just be practice

…To repeat, Durant will most likely re-sign with Oklahoma City this offseason, especially now that he came within one game of reaching the NBA Finals. He’ll get his 10th year of service, a significant bump on the max salary scale, and reemerge for a contract next summer that should be worth in excess of $200 million.

That’s when the Celtics — who do indeed have a legitimate shot at the forward, provided they acquire the necessary additional pieces — will take their place in line.

This summer will instead be a time for suitors such as the Celtics to make a first impression with presentations. Durant is expected to listen, file away his early thoughts, and play one final year with Russell Westbrook. It’s an outside chance, but maybe they actually win an NBA title together this time, in which case leaving would be impossible.

Herald: Celtics have many options to consider in complicated NBA free agent market

This is a little-discussed aspect of Kevin Durant and free agency. And while it’s not clear if he’ll do the 1+1 deal most people would take in this situation or just take a long term deal now for the sake of stability, this idea of a sort of practice pitch is interesting.

Basically, they’d plant seeds in Durant’s head and he’d get to spend a year seeing if what the Celtics said came to fruition. And then next summer the Celtics an pull an “I told you so” and then Durant could be so impressed he’d sign here.

OK… maybe that’s a little bit of a fantasy but at least the Celtics could start the discussion and at least get a sense of what Durant is looking for. And if they could implement some of those things without really screwing themselves over, then maybe they can make things more attractive for him next summer.

Either way, any chance they get to talk to a megastar player like Durant is a positive development. We’ll see what they do with it.

The rest of the links:

Globe: (Sunday Notes) Oakland doesn’t want to lose Warriors but it needs a plan

Herald: Buckley: Celtics better for having Ainge/Stevens duo

MassLive: C’s need shooting, is Hield the answer?