Brad Stevens: President of Basketball Ops
- Thread starter RedOctober3829
- Start date
He's completely destroying it as GM, and I think the Finals run validates that it's not just the hype of making fun moves.
Zach Lowe made the point on his pod that it's easier to look like a genius when GMing a rebuilding team: you can "win" tons of trades, the picks are always around the corner, etc. However, GMing a team on the brink of contention is much harder, since you have to make very tough choices to add talent
By that standard, I don't think anyone is doing a better job than Brad right now (although GS and Miami have been great at that as well.)
One additional thought, wrt Brad not making 1st round picks for 3 consecutive years:
A lot of this is doable because Brown and Tatum are on very cheap deals relative to the current cap. If you look at cap %, it's a lot like when the Warriors had Steph and Klay on contracts that ended up well below a spiking cap.
That allows you to load up on 15-25M vets, as the Celtics have. It's probably team mismanagement to not do that whilr Brown and Tatum are this cheap, and these deals all expire right when the stars get expensive.
I'd expect them to start making picks again in 24 or 25, barring a star becoming available and going to a big 3 unbalanced roster.
A lot of this is doable because Brown and Tatum are on very cheap deals relative to the current cap. If you look at cap %, it's a lot like when the Warriors had Steph and Klay on contracts that ended up well below a spiking cap.
That allows you to load up on 15-25M vets, as the Celtics have. It's probably team mismanagement to not do that whilr Brown and Tatum are this cheap, and these deals all expire right when the stars get expensive.
I'd expect them to start making picks again in 24 or 25, barring a star becoming available and going to a big 3 unbalanced roster.
Brad stepped into the GM role like he was made for it. Ainge was excellent, Brad is also excellent. There is plenty of credit to go around for the success of this current version of the team between Ainge, Stevens, and Udoka.
The margin for error is so much smaller. Or maybe the measure of success is so much more difficult. Barring catastrophic injury, the Celtics almost have to get to the Finals for Stevens's moves to be a success. (Or winning it. YMMV). The rebuilding GMs can have 3 seasons of elevating from 30 wins to 45, just making the playoffs, just winning a series, etc., etc.
You wonder if part of his aggression stems from the frustration he may have felt when DA held his picks so tightly and Brad wanted more firepower as the head coach.
I think his coaching experience gives him a solid idea of what's needed, but I don't think his moves are coming from a negative place like "frustration."
Who knows? Maybe he'd agree with Ainge's approach of 2-3 years ago because he knew that Tatum and Brown weren't "ready" yet, or some such.
As far as I can tell, the maturation and improvement of those 2 has solidified in his mind enough so that building around them for the present and very near future is the clear way to go.
This is the bet all GMs have to place at some point. It appears that Stevens is betting big on being dealt A-K suited. Too many GMs or owners see pocket 7s and go crazy. But unlike cards, whether a player is an Ace is often short-lived.
EDIT: typos.
Last edited:
I agree 100% with the bolded. I think he is:
- Decisive, where Ainge at times was not.
- Has a different (lower) valuation of the value of draft picks - particularly middling to low picks - than Ainge did.
- Has a different (higher) valuation of mid-to-high salaried players.
- Has more familiarity with the current Celtics team froma coaching perspective.
I wonder, though. Was Ainge "indecisive" or had he decided that making "these types of moves" 2-3 seasons ago wouldn't have accomplished what we hope these moves will? We'll never know of course, whether Ainge would have done anything like this *this* season. Probably not, IMO. But I think the context of this past season and the next few is different enough from the previous seasons that I'm not as certain as some.
Maybe indecisive wasn't fair to Ainge. But I don't think Brad would have made some of the moves Ainge did, most notably everything that went down around the departure of Horford/Rozier and arrival of Kemba. In some way, not sure exactly what, Brad would have gone in a different direction I think.
I agree there. I hadn't really approached it in terms of "what would Stevens have done back then" as opposed to "would Ainge have done now what Stevens has done now."
Yeah, acquiring Horford and Brogdon is basically a complete redo of the summer of 2019.
https://theathletic.com/3547881/2022/08/30/celtics-brad-stevens-gm/?source=dailyemail&campaign=601983
Brad getting some props after his first year on the job
Brad getting some props after his first year on the job
We know this is true because Ainge, when interviewed after Stevens was promoted, said explicitly that Brad didn't agree with some of the moves Ainge made and that now he gets to remake the roster in his own vision (paraphrasing). Let's just say I don't think he was a fan of the Tristan Thompson signing, for one.
The most obvious thing about Brad is that he likes to stay very big, even if it makes the offensive side slightly tougher.
I really wonder whether he would have drafted Bane over Pritchard.
Along the same vein, I'll take it a step further and say Brad values size that leads to plus defense.
12-mths of fingerprints:
Kemba out
Thompson out
passed on Fournier
Horford added
Smart extended/starting
Timelord extended/starting
White added
Schroder out/Theis added
He also seems to value vets that have a history of positive On-Off over several seasons (above players + Brogdon + Gallo)
Nesmith, Bey and Bane were considered the three best 3pt shooters in the 2020 draft. Danny probably felt (most draftniks agreed with him) that they had the best wing shooter in the draft. Brad also seems to be comfortable unloading late Firsts.
Ugh Nesmith was such a whiff (mea culpa: I liked him
). I remember reading a scouts report comparing him to Klay Thompson when he came out of Wash St....Just perused the 2020 draft, a bunch of useful players taken after himhttps://www.basketball-reference.com/draft/NBA_2020.html
Last edited:
Nesmith parlayed 60-115 shooting from three in his 500 soph year minutes into the 14th spot in the draft. Besides that hot shooting, he’s been less than average from three. Unfortunately, being able to light it up in a three-point shooting drill or in practice hasn’t translated to him being able to score in actual NBA games. Maybe he can figure it out playing on the Rick Carlisle in Indiana.
Hitting at 14, and not trading the Desmond Bane pick would probably have meant banner 18 and the perfect third wing to put with the Jays. Hindsight is always 20/20, but this roster with Isaiah Stewart and Bane would have been a perpetual 60 win juggernaut.
Hitting at 14, and not trading the Desmond Bane pick would probably have meant banner 18 and the perfect third wing to put with the Jays. Hindsight is always 20/20, but this roster with Isaiah Stewart and Bane would have been a perpetual 60 win juggernaut.
If we are accurately reading the tea leaves regarding Brad's views on many of Danny's moves, I think it's noteworthy the extent to which Danny seemingly did not bring Brad into his decision making. It's really difficult to put yourself in their shoes but I will do so anyway. I'd like to think that if I was making the personnel decisions for any basketball team, I would run moves by the HC and be heavily influenced by his or her reactions. And maybe Danny did exactly that at times. But it sure seems like he did so way less than one might expect.
I don't have the quotes to back it up, but I remember hearing Danny involved Brad quite a bit, especially in his last few years. I think part of the reason the FO felt comfortable with Brad is that they saw his thought process behind the scenes.
Now did Danny always agree with Brad's ideas? Perhaps Danny should have agreed more often than he did. But that's a different discussion.
What's the point of having a GM if every move you make needs the HC approval? Why not just have a HC/GM?
I get running the moves by the HC, but if I think the trade improves the team, I make the trade. If the HC disagrees with my moves that much... I get a new HC.
Of course. It's not black and white. I would not expect any HC to have a veto right. And yes, there probably was some consensus element between Danny and Brad.
That being said, it just seems from the moves Brad has made that they may have been less on the same page than I would have expected consensus building would generate.
It's also entirely possible that Brad was on board for most of the moves Danny made, and now with the benefit of hindsight, has decided he wants to go a different way.
Interesting Q& with Wyc in the Globe. Here's an excerpt:
Now that Brad has had a couple of summers in this post, what are the differences between working with him and Danny Ainge?
I think Brad is very consultative. He loves talking and hashing things out. Danny is more set in his ways and has his opinions. Brad Is eager to get all the information and learn as much as he can. He’s got spreadsheets organized and you can click through on presentations and click on anything and it goes into the data behind the statement. It’s very impressive.
What he did to build the team was spectacular. It wasn’t luck. He did a good job of going through things and seeing what he ought to do. Those moves were well-considered and he did an excellent job building the team.
So, his data-driven, analytical approach mixes in with a really warm personality. I’m sure his relationships with other general managers are open and communicative. I’m not on those calls, but Brad has a lot of interpersonal warmth, and a lot of data. And I think Danny is more, like, the former pro athlete. [He’s] funny as hell, but kind of more seat-of-the-pants.
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/09/16/sports/wyc-grousbeck-celtics/
Now that Brad has had a couple of summers in this post, what are the differences between working with him and Danny Ainge?
I think Brad is very consultative. He loves talking and hashing things out. Danny is more set in his ways and has his opinions. Brad Is eager to get all the information and learn as much as he can. He’s got spreadsheets organized and you can click through on presentations and click on anything and it goes into the data behind the statement. It’s very impressive.
What he did to build the team was spectacular. It wasn’t luck. He did a good job of going through things and seeing what he ought to do. Those moves were well-considered and he did an excellent job building the team.
So, his data-driven, analytical approach mixes in with a really warm personality. I’m sure his relationships with other general managers are open and communicative. I’m not on those calls, but Brad has a lot of interpersonal warmth, and a lot of data. And I think Danny is more, like, the former pro athlete. [He’s] funny as hell, but kind of more seat-of-the-pants.
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/09/16/sports/wyc-grousbeck-celtics/
Thanks for sharing. It really seems like the narrative that Brad would move back to coaching in a few years is dead for now. He appears to have the right acumen and bearing for his current role. I imagine he misses coaching on some level but its hard to see him leaving for anything other than a top tier franchise with upside.
It is a bit shocking that Brad Stevens knows his way around an Excel spreadsheet. Didn't see that coming at all.
/sarc
I bet Brad has some kick ass macros on his spreadsheets. Danny hard codes his data.
A fun read about the human side of Brad Stevens in today's Globe.
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2024/03/07/sports/brad-stevens-son-celtics/
It is a good reminder that he is a father and a big fan of them game in general in addition to being the puppet master for the best team in the NBA.
I love that the first picture that accompanies the article shows Jeff Van Gundy sitting next to Stevens in the stands of Wellesley High. The article says that Van Gundy, Austin Ainge and Celtics assistant coach Tony Dobbins sometimes join Stevens to watch Brad's son Brady play. The pessimist might say they are sucking up to their boss however I prefer to believe that they do it for love of the game. In many ways youth athletics are more enjoyable and real than the big money highly curated professional games.
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2024/03/07/sports/brad-stevens-son-celtics/
It is a good reminder that he is a father and a big fan of them game in general in addition to being the puppet master for the best team in the NBA.
I love that the first picture that accompanies the article shows Jeff Van Gundy sitting next to Stevens in the stands of Wellesley High. The article says that Van Gundy, Austin Ainge and Celtics assistant coach Tony Dobbins sometimes join Stevens to watch Brad's son Brady play. The pessimist might say they are sucking up to their boss however I prefer to believe that they do it for love of the game. In many ways youth athletics are more enjoyable and real than the big money highly curated professional games.
Agreed, I really liked this article. The bit about Van Gundy standing up and shouting at the ref before he remembered he was at a high school game was awesome.
Yea, we want 1-10 for as long as possible (Top8 + Luke + X) right?
Boston has seen some pretty spectacular GM work across its teams over the last 2 decades.
Brad's 2.5 years ranks right up there.
I’ve been thinking lately about posting on the subject, but it really is incredible. I remember the summer of 2019 when Kyrie and Al left and I was struggling to see the path forward. We had used up our cache of acquired draft picks and didn’t look to be in position to select an impact player with our own. The salary cap rendered it impossible to add one through free agency, while our lack of young talent made it unlikely that we could acquire one via trade. Yet somehow, Brad has methodically turned Kemba, Romeo, Nesmith, Marcus, TimeLord, and some middling picks into Al, White, Porzingis, and Holiday. Obviously, he needs at least one banner as the ultimate validation, but the last several years have been a masterclass from Brad Stevens.
Within 24 months, Brad tore it down to the studs (pun intended) and rebuilt it around the JAYs. He consolidated & added perceived flawed players (& HC) at every turn, and dealt late firsts one at a time until the final Jrue addition.
This Celtic team is giving off 2007 Pats vibes (who probably beat the NYG 8/10 times) without all the fanfare.
Fortuitously the C's get the benefit of a best of 7 throughout.
We’ve come a long way in our view of Brad:
I kinda like that our initial take was not panglossian. He had to earn our faith in this role, and we largely started out skeptical. But then he proved how good he is at this role too, in move after move for the last 3 years. And at this point, a chorus of Celtics fans pretty much follow him around singing "Hallelujah" wherever he goes.
And the funny thing is, this won't and shouldn't change if they don't win a title this year. He'll just triple down and make some huge change to the roster that no one sees coming, and we'll love it.
I think most of us fell in love with POBOBs when he immediately punted Kemba & brought back Horford.
Getting rid of Tristan Thompson for a box of Dunkins, hours later, was the cherry on top.
Credit where credit is due:
I get that exposing old takes is fun because people get to point at a scoreboard.
The reality is that most folks revise their views over time so picking a discreet post from a few years ago may expose a bad read but most adults realize that people can/do revise their opinions all day every day as information becomes available. As such the searching for old posts feels a bit juvenile too - and who has the time for that?
That said, feel free to unearth any of mine that look bad and we can discuss at length (make a separate thread please). You won't get much satisfaction though - my answer is that my opinion likely changed as the result of getting more information. Like most everyone else.
The reality is that most folks revise their views over time so picking a discreet post from a few years ago may expose a bad read but most adults realize that people can/do revise their opinions all day every day as information becomes available. As such the searching for old posts feels a bit juvenile too - and who has the time for that?
That said, feel free to unearth any of mine that look bad and we can discuss at length (make a separate thread please). You won't get much satisfaction though - my answer is that my opinion likely changed as the result of getting more information. Like most everyone else.
I think people just wanted to look back at a snapshot in time, to remember the different feelings people had on the move. No one is getting called out or roasted.
I understand why they do it and I have nothing to hide - I have posted plenty of stupid and incorrect things over time.
That said, I've been in the messageboarding game long enough to know that if people have to worry that someone with too much time is using the search function to unearth a dated take, they are less likely to post. YRMV.
People should worry that their own bad takes will be criticized. That's how we (generally) avoid talk radio level bullshit here. But nobody is 100% on evaluation. Everyone misses something. Some guys you think will develop don't. Some guys you think won't do.
My last divergence for the thread but I think this community is generally pretty good at interrogating bad takes in the moment. No need to unearth stuff from the dustbin of SoSH history but I understand that you/others feel differently.
Back to Stevens, if he were a free agent this offseason, does anyone think he wouldn't instantly become the most sought after front office type in the NBA? Also, were he to decide that he wanted to go back to coaching, I suspect he'd have an extremely robust college and pro market as well. Everyone wants to check out the big brain on Brad.
If he were not, that would be an indictment of the NBA, not Brad. I can't recall another GM who was this good at turning late 1sts + flotsam into top-50 players, over and over.
And not only does he get top-50 guys, he gets the ones who have room to improve into more, and who fit into the team.
Finally, despite not having 1sts ever, he got Hauser and Kornet, and re-signed PP to a value deal. He's been so good that the team probably wouldn't even have minutes for the late 1sts he's traded to get playing time.
To me that values rhetoric too much. It’s nice to see how bad all of our past takes are so we know our current passion or whatever we are convinced of right now has a high probability of being wrong.
I'm perfectly happy with my original real time take on the news, almost 3 years ago. No negativism, or snarkiness, just wondering what sneaker would drop next. And I was and am a Brad fan. He made a very good team better, but they still havent climbed to the peak.
Yet.
Yet.
Last edited:
No I agree. We are generally good at questioning and discussing good and bad takes. And sometimes whack takes are fun to contemplate like six pitching man rotations and shit. I was referring to the "no way this guy can play in the NBA" strong takes, where the guy goes on to be a borderline all star by year three. None of us really know anything though.
I'll complain about "Jonathan ordered the code red" regurgitation that appear here sometimes, but it's kind of inevitable. As long as people don't keep humping that cow for pages and pages, whatever.
All varied opinions are welcome & if you can't own your bad sports takes from near or far, then grab a handful of gummies.
I can't recall one time the MODs or regular posters let the Cellar turn into EEI for more than a minute.
I can't recall one time the MODs or regular posters let the Cellar turn into EEI for more than a minute.
Thank you for the drive by Pulp Fiction reference. Your reward is a Royale with cheese.
I think it’s fine if everyone is reasonable and reconizes how often NBA GM’s get it wrong with much more info than we have. I liked Jahlil Okafor lol.
Edit: Marvin Freakin Bagley too!
I thought that the Lakers were frauds going into the 2020 playoffs and that the Bucks were in 2021.
(ok I still think it about that Bucks team, but I was definitely wrong about Giannis in the playoffs)
