NBA News: Boston Celtics, Coach Brad Stevens Agree To Contract Extension
On Wednesday, the Boston Celtics announced the continuation of one of the NBA’s longest and most successful partnerships, officially extending the contract of head coach Brad Stevens. The franchise revealed its renewed partnership with Stevens via a press release on the Celtics website. Per team policy, the financial terms of the 43-year-old’s extension were not released.
Stevens was originally hired by the Celtics in July of 2013, which makes him the sixth-longest tenured coach in the league. He replaced the heralded Doc Rivers, who had led the Celtics to an NBA championship in 2008, when he opted to take a new job with the Los Angeles Clippers that same year.
In spite of losing Rivers to the Clippers, Boston was able to regain its status as a perennial playoff club and title contender in short order under Stevens. Since coaching a rebuilding version of the squad to just 25 wins and its first failure to qualify for postseason play in seven years during his first go-round, he has directed the Celtics to five straight playoff appearances, with a sixth yet to come this summer.
The current team, led by Jayson Tatum, Kemba Walker, Gordon Hayward and Jaylen Brown, currently sits in third place in the Eastern Conference standings. It also holds a top-four ranking league-wide in both offensive rating (113.1) and defensive rating (106.6).
Over his seven years in Boston, Stevens has compiled a win-loss record of 318-245.
In the extension announcement, Celtics owner and governor Wyc Grousbeck praised Stevens and his franchise’s continued partnership with him.
“Brad is an accomplished coach and an outstanding person,” he said. “We are proud to have him lead our team forward in our quest for Banner 18.”
Meanwhile, president of basketball operations Danny Ainge called Stevens “one of the most intelligent and hard-working coaches in the game today,” crediting him with building a winning culture and speaking highly of his ability to lead, as well as act as a collaborator in the building of a winning franchise.
“His character and integrity have contributed to a culture that we all highly value here. Brad is a great teammate, and a leader people want to follow. We are honored to have him with us as we continue to pursue our next championship.”
Before making the move to the professional ranks, Stevens led the Butler Bulldogs to two seemingly surprising NCAA Final Four appearances. In 2010, he and Hayward came up just short of winning a national championship when a half-court heave that would have won the title game missed the mark as time expired and the Duke Blue Devils won 61-59.
As shared previously by The Inquisitr, a recent report has suggested that Hayward could potentially be targeted by the Charlotte Hornets in free agency.
