Boston Celtics: 3 reasons Brad Stevens is right for Cs front office

Boston Celtics fans were taken for the ride of their lives yesterday when the front office was shaken to its very core and the organizational structure of the team was turned on its head.

In a stunning turn of events, Danny Ainge has stepped down from the role of general manager for the Cs–a job he held for the last 18 years–to make way for head coach Brad Stevens to become the President of Basketball Operations.

Don’t say you saw this coming. No one did.

Just two weeks ago, Ainge guaranteed that he’d be back. Apparently, though, he had been planning an exit since the trade deadline in March. While he was correct about Stevens returning, no one could have quite imagined such a promotion for the former Butler coach.

The new reality is that Brad is likely here to stay if Cs owner Wyc Grousbeck is a man of his word:

Hope you like having the Indianan-turned-‘Masshole’ around, because it sounds like he has as close to a lifetime contract as you can get in professional sports…assuming the Cs don’t completely collapse and become an organization-wide disaster under his watch.

It won’t though. Stevens is ready for this role.

A change at head coach is a good move, but only because he is still around. Why exactly is his promotion a good thing, you ask?

Let’s take a look:

Reason #1 Boston Celtics nailed Stevens promotion: Urgent need to win

Brad Stevens isn’t likely to mail in his efforts in his first offseason at the helm of the Celtics. His responsibilities out of the gate are pretty vast, with the need to hire a new head coach and retool this roster at the top of his to-do list.

Expect an exciting HC hire and a blockbuster trade or two this offseason. Ainge hinted there would be changes, but a new front office guarantees it.

Reason #2 Boston Celtics nailed Stevens promotion: Recruiting specialty

Coming from the college realm, Brad Stevens knows a thing or two about the various aspects of recruiting. Whether it be a player for his team or a coach on his staff, Stevens saw it all during his 12-year career at Butler.

Stevens took a Horizon League program to the National Championship in consecutive seasons, losing to two college basketball blue bloods in UCONN and Duke in the National Championship game. His work with the Bulldogs in the late 2000’s led to a Big East invitation in the 2010’s after a one-season stint in the A-10.

That took a herculean effort on the recruiting trail. He was able to land a pair of 4-star recruits in Khyle Marshall and Kellen Dunham. Then there was the hidden gem, Gordon Hayward, that Stevens molded into an NBA lottery pick.

Stevens has had plenty of time to build personal relationships, so there is hope his skills from the Butler days translate to being an executive in the NBA. There’s a chance that he gets some recruiting help from the likes of Marcus Smart (if he isn’t traded) and Jaylen Brown with Jayson Tatum planning on taking a backseat. 

Either way, the recruiter in Stevens will have to be awakened in his new role in the Boston Celtics front office.

Reason #3 Boston Celtics nailed Stevens promotion: Knows how to complement Jays

Brad Stevens knows a thing or two about what kind of playing style works best with Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. As their coach for four and five years, respectively, Stevens has seen them at their best and at their least effective.

For years, Stevens’ sets have been at the mercy of Danny Ainge’s roster building. Even with roster imbalances throughout the years that often led the rotation wing heavy–hell, it still is in many ways–Stevens was able to engineer four Eastern Conference finals runs as well as postseason appearances in every season besides his first in Boston.

Now, he will have the keys to the franchise’s player movement and roster makeup. And that’s a damn good thing.

Stevens has a direct line to his players in a way most front offices don’t. He was in the trenches with his guys every day during practice.

What makes this situation unique, though, as opposed to Gregg Popovich’s post in San Antonio, is that Stevens knows what his guys will want in both a supporting cast and a head coach. There is an opportunity in Boston for Brad to sculpt a team from top to bottom that works for his players and his vision after his voice lost luster through the years as the locker-room issues piled up.