In a move that essentially came out of nowhere, the Boston Celtics have hired Butler head coach Brad Stevens to fill their vacant head coaching job.
The Celtics began a rebuilding job two weeks ago, when they allowed longtime head coach Doc Rivers to head to the Los Angeles Clippers and traded veterans Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Jason Terry to the Brooklyn Nets in a blockbuster deal on draft day.
Stevens has an impressive college coaching resume, which includes leading the formerly unknown Butler program to back-to-back NCAA Championship Game appearances in the 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 seasons.
Judging from his past coaching philosophies while leading the Bulldogs’ program, Stevens could be a great hire for Boston, as he will bring his half-court, defense-first philosophy to a veteran-laden Boston team.
There should be a minimal adjustment period for the Celtics to Stevens, given the fact that his coaching style is similar to Rivers, so Boston will most likely not have to change their play-style.
Stevens also has great leadership skills, as he showcased by bringing Butler to the NCAA Championship Game twice, and should be able to make a seamless transition to the Celtics and to the NBA as a whole.
The 36-year-old definitely has potential to be a great NBA head coach, and although Stevens was not publicly on the Celtics’ radar much until today, this could be an excellent hire by the organization, as Boston looks to turn the page on the Doc Rivers era.
Check out fellow The Inscriber writer Robert Cobb’s article on the Stevens hire here.
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