Brad Stevens: President of Basketball Ops

CaptainLaddie

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Stevens is probably doing this until coach K dies or quits, then takes over at Duke.

The C's are are talent depleted and have little salary cap solutions short of getting rid of Kemba in a package with Tatum or Brown, so its a rebuild regardless. There's no upside in the Basketball Ops job in next 3-4 years. BS was likely burned out, his players started to tune him out, he realized he couldn't get all out effort every night like he did in first couple years, so...move up, get paid and then go back to college when Duke opens up.
You were saying?

View: https://twitter.com/GoodmanHoops/status/1400135966619209729
 

djbayko

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These aren’t necessarily “his guys” though. It’s likely he had some input but at the end of the day these were Danny’s picks. We will soon find out who Brad liked/disliked. I expect Jabari to be released by 5pm today.
Not Parker or even someone like Romeo. I'm more concerned about his ability to pull the trigger on a Jaylen and/or Smart deal that might make the team better. What is that trade? No idea, especially with the former. But the trade landscape of the NBA has a way of changing dramatically over time, and these guys have battled for Brad for years.
 

Pablo's TB Lover

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Not sure the timing would work out: She's preparing the USA women's 3x3 team for the Olympics and will be in Tokyo next month.
Eh, not that Kara is the choice at this point in her coaching career, but the schedule shouldn't be too restrictive for her to get interviewed. The first round of the playoffs isn't even done yet, and Brad has already said his first priority is to help his assistants and staff either with staying aboard or finding other opportunities. Then I'm guessing his second priority is to learn the ropes of his new job and get scouting done for the draft July 29th. Finally once he is comfortable in these endeavors, the C's can choose their next coach.

I don't think they are in a rush to name a coach, but could always be proven wrong. It is clear the organization was thinking about this change for awhile, so maybe Brad already has a short list. While it is tempting to say he would lean towards plucking a college coach like Danny did with him, Brad has been in the league for 8 years now and think he appreciates how many qualified assistants there are out there. Mark Few would be the obvious equivalent of Stevens from 8 years ago but he is MUCH older than Brad was at this stage.
 

Cellar-Door

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Not Parker or even someone like Romeo. I'm more concerned about his ability to pull the trigger on a Jaylen and/or Smart deal that might make the team better. What is that trade? No idea, especially with the former. But the trade landscape of the NBA has a way of changing dramatically over time, and these guys have battled for Brad for years.
I think Smart is the question. He seems the clear guy you need to make a decision on now. He's got value around the league on his current deal, and he might bring you good value. His next deal... who knows. Also obviously... Kemba but I think Brad would move him as much as he likes him because the fit issues are more obvious there.
 

Pablo's TB Lover

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Well geez, I'm hoping next year we can finally go without a player having one foot out the door (Kyrie in 2019), or a coach/executive who are fully invested in their roles (Danny/Brad this year). All we have done in the 3 of the past 5 years this wasn't happening is make the conference finals.
 

Eddie Jurak

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It's fair to cite Brad's incredible success building Butler. That being said, Pitino built an all-timer at Kentucky, and that sure didn't translate to running an NBA franchise.

I do trust that Brad is farrr better prepared for this role than Pitino was, though. Just stating the obvious that success at the collegiate level is no guarantee at the NBA level. I know, duh.
Pitino was a big name coach at big name programs. A lot of recruiting for him was just pitching to that nation's top rated prospects. For Brad it was very diffferent, he had to find guys who he thought he could work with and who had potential. (That said, I'm not necessarily convinced that finding HS players for college is all that analogous to NBA scouting and development.
If Brad trades Jaylen for latter day Raef LaFrentz, I will fucking lose it.
I'd be shocked.
Scal seems to strongly think it's going to be Kara Lawson FWIW.
I strongly think it won't be. I think it is a bad look to take the Duke job and then bolt a year later. It happens, but I doubt it will happen here.
2. Brad explicitly said he would have been happy to stay as coach with a new GM/president. I get the sense he is open to trying this role but it also may not be his preference. I think he is being a good soldier more than he wants to leave the coaching spot.
I can only hope you are wrong about this - it is not a great way to deal with a very good coach. I have to hope that if Brad really wanted to stay on as coach he would have insisted on it. I don;t think it bodes well for the team if you are right about this.
 
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Beomoose

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Whatishappening.gif

The inability of the team to close games out this season got me as low on Brad as I've ever been, but I still like the guy and I'm choosing to be guardedly optimistic about his new role.

Tons of love for Danny, but it's pretty easy to see how it's time. Sad we couldn't associate his term with another couple banners, but that's life.
 

OurF'ingCity

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4. My guess is that the future is still open ended for Brad. Try this for a year or two, see how he likes it, and if it works out. Wouldn't be surprised to see him as a head coach in the pros or in college in a couple years though.
Yeah, I'm not enough of a conspiracy theorist to believe that the Coach K news and the Celtics' changes are directly linked, but I absolutely believe that Celtics ownership and Stevens himself may see his new role as more transitionary than permanent. In other words, this keeps Stevens' institutional knowledge in-house for the time being, which will be very helpful when conducting a coaching search, and will give him a better sense as to how he feels about a front office position vs. being a coach.

That said, I would not at all be shocked if Brad left for Duke in a year or so, and I suspect the Celtics' owners would not be either. My guess is that the Cs owners are comfortable that, by that point, a new head coach will have a year of experience with the team under his belt such that, if Stevens does leave, the combination of the coach + Zarren, etc. will provide enough stability for a new GM (or, who knows, maybe Zarren would just be promoted at that point, if he wants it - for all we know there is already a handshake deal in place where if Stevens leaves in the next few years it is Zarren's job to lose). But, of course, Stevens might decide that he actually loves being in the front office, or Duke might just decide to go in a different direction, etc. I am sure these are all things that Celtics ownership and high-level staff have thought through in some detail.
 

Cesar Crespo

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Why would the C's be willing to waste a few years of Tatum and Brown so Brad can try GM for a year or two? He's here for the long haul.
 

bankshot1

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What will be interesting is how Brad transitions from a polite, mild-mannered coach, seemingly always protecting his players to a GM/head of ops, who has roster decisions to make, and will have to make hard decisions about guys he wants to move forward with and guys he doesn't.
 

8slim

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Pitino was a big name coach at big name programs. A lot of recruiting for him was just pitching to that nation's top rated prospects. For Brad it was very diffferent, he had to find guys who he thought he could work with and who had potential. (That said, I'm not necessarily convinced that finding HS players for college is all that analogous to NBA scouting and development.
1) I think that undersells how competitive recruiting is for top talent amongst big time programs. And Kentucky was coming off major sanctions as Pitino took over.
2) Pitino also did a Stephens-like job at Providence. So he had a very similar pedigree in that regard.

But we are in agreement that building a mid-major college program, and running an NBA franchise, are not really similar gigs.
 

bakahump

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Yea this all makes me even more personally certain (as someone who wasnt there and has no insight can be ;) ) that Danny knew this was coming and shot down any "replace Brad talk" to keep some continuity. Wyc may have also been a driving force on this of course.

Needless to say Brad was going nowhere this offseason, even IF the players tuned him out, as long as Danny and Wyc could help it.

And again I think it shows what kind of person Danny was by taking as much of the heat as he could for the season (granted alot of it WAS his fault).
 

Cellar-Door

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1) I think that undersells how competitive recruiting is for top talent amongst big time programs. And Kentucky was coming off major sanctions as Pitino took over.
2) Pitino also did a Stephens-like job at Providence. So he had a very similar pedigree in that regard.

But we are in agreement that building a mid-major college program, and running an NBA franchise, are not really similar gigs.
Pitino's issues as a pro head coach/GM was that he had zero patience. He actually drafted great. He just then traded those guys away.
 

HomeRunBaker

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Man, this is a bad take. Finding guys who were undersized and could play a little bit and coaching them up for four years so you beat a bunch of freshmen and sophomores in college is not the same thing as finding college kids who could play in the pros and matchup against elite players every night. He got lucky with Hayward and had one other NBA player in Shelvin Mack, who is epitome of journeyman NBA guy. both were recruited in his first year as coach at Butler. Hayward was a three-star kid who only got recruited by B10 teams late after he grew eight inches in his sophomore and junior years. AFTER he made two straight final fours, Stevens never recruited another guy who made it to the league, despite presumably having a much better pool of talent available to him. so in six years, he recruited two NBA players. I'm not even including the five years prior when he was an assistant coach at Butler and was a recruiter.

no one questions him ability to coach. But no way can you look at his time Butler and say his strength is NBA talent evaluation

edit: now Jay Wright? that guy seems to be able to find NBA talent.
I mean, I don’t know how to respond. You described precisely what talent evaluation is.

Jay Wright is recruiting from a pool of 5* high school players at Villanova. Brad was recruiting from a pool of 2* and maybe 3* players at a bad mid-major. These aren’t even comparable situations as they aren’t evaluating the same kids.
 

8slim

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What will be interesting is how Brad transitions from a polite, mild-mannered coach, seemingly always protecting his players to a GM/head of ops, who has roster decisions to make, and will have to make hard decisions about guys he wants to move forward with and guys he doesn't.
Danny has been a polite, mild-mannered GM -- or at least he always came across that way to me. I don't think one ascends to the roles that Stephens has held without having the necessary cold-heartedness when it comes to decision making.
 

Cellar-Door

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I mean, I don’t know how to respond. You described precisely what talent evaluation is.

Jay Wright is recruiting from a pool of 5* high school players at Villanova. Brad was recruiting from a pool of 2* and maybe 3* players at a bad mid-major. These aren’t even comparable situations as they aren’t evaluating the same kids.
Yeah, ONLY 2 pros out of Butler... is a miracle. Though it's actually 3, he recruited Keelan Martin before he left.
 

OurF'ingCity

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Why would the C's be willing to waste a few years of Tatum and Brown so Brad can try GM for a year or two? He's here for the long haul.
Why do you equate Stevens keeping his future options open with wasting a few years of Tatum and Brown? I have no doubt that Stevens will give his all to his new job as long as he is here and that Celtics ownership is confident he can successful in the role. But that doesn't mean there can't be an understanding between him and ownership that he might not be here for that long if the fit isn't right or if some other opportunity presents itself.
 

HomeRunBaker

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The Celtics coaching position will be a fairly plumb opening; don't forget, these coaching candidates are looking for challenges. There are worse challenges than having 2 young All-Stars.
It’s the best job out there by far. You have two young All-Stars, locked up under contract, and salary slots opened up or about to open up in 1-2 years. No wonder NBA playoff coaches right now want this gig.
 

AimingForYoko

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My biggest reaction is what the fuck.

But who knows, maybe Brad will suit this role better.

Unless he actually hires Jason Kidd. Which I can't fathom.
 

DJnVa

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I mean, I don’t know how to respond. You described precisely what talent evaluation is.

Jay Wright is recruiting from a pool of 5* high school players at Villanova. Brad was recruiting from a pool of 2* and maybe 3* players at a bad mid-major.
Butler was a bad mid-major? When Hayward signed they had come off a 29-7 Sweet 16 run with Lickliter and then 30-4 with Brad the season before Hayward got there.
 

bankshot1

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Danny has been a polite, mild-mannered GM -- or at least he always came across that way to me. I don't think one ascends to the roles that Stephens has held without having the necessary cold-heartedness when it comes to decision making.
But Danny had the reputation as a tough/ruthless negotiator always looking to screw other GMs and at time heartless guy. The roles and tactics of coach and GM are not the same. I think there will be a learning curve that at times might be challenging for Brad. But I think he's a very talented guy and has a good chance at success That's my emerald-glasses take today.
 

Cesar Crespo

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Why do you equate Stevens keeping his future options open with wasting a few years of Tatum and Brown? I have no doubt that Stevens will give his all to his new job as long as he is here and that Celtics ownership is confident he can successful in the role. But that doesn't mean there can't be an understanding between him and ownership that he might not be here for that long if the fit isn't right or if some other opportunity presents itself.
Why not just look for someone more committed now instead of going through the whole process again in a few years? Plus what will Brown and Tatum think about the stability of the C's FO job with their FA approaching? Seems like giving someone a GM job who might opt out in 2 years is a really bad idea. Why bother?

The next 2 years are the most important so I guess if you trust Brad to do the job better? But any new GM would end up making their own moves too.
 

8slim

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But Danny had the reputation as a tough/ruthless negotiator always looking to screw other GMs and at time heartless guy. The roles and tactics of coach and GM are not the same. I think there will be a learning curve that at times might be challenging for Brad. But I think he's a very talented guy and has a good chance at succes..
Danny developed that rep, but I don't imagine anyone was saying he was a ruthless negotiator when he was hired in May 2003. Obviously, we didn't know. Just making the point that Brad's sideline and press conference demeanor likely has little predictive value in how successful he'll be as GM.
 

HomeRunBaker

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Butler was a bad mid-major? When Hayward signed they had come off a 29-7 Sweet 16 run with Lickliter and then 30-4 with Brad the season before Hayward got there.
I knew they were in the Horizon cellar prior to Brads arrival but they did bounce back just prior to Brad. They also had one NBA player since the 50’s prior to Brad and as mentioned above he recruited 3 in his brief time there who weren’t highly thought of out of HS.
 

Mooch

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It’s the best job out there by far. You have two young All-Stars, locked up under contract, and salary slots opened up or about to open up in 1-2 years. No wonder NBA playoff coaches right now want this gig.
100% correct.

And one of the two all-stars is improving at such a rate that he could be a top 5 player in the league before his current contract expires. Prospective coaches will be knocking down Brad's door to coach the Celtics.
 

bankshot1

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Danny developed that rep, but I don't imagine anyone was saying he was a ruthless negotiator when he was hired in May 2003. Obviously, we didn't know. Just making the point that Brad's sideline and press conference demeanor likely has little predictive value in how successful he'll be as GM.
When he was hired Danny was the scrappy Celtic guard who bit Tree Rollins. (yeahI know). Ainge was always a fighter. And I suspect Brad will be too just in another manner so he can swim in shark-infested waters.
 

BaseballJones

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It’s the best job out there by far. You have two young All-Stars, locked up under contract, and salary slots opened up or about to open up in 1-2 years. No wonder NBA playoff coaches right now want this gig.
In 2023-24, Kemba and TT are off the books. Here's all that's under contract for that year, according to Spotrac:

Tatum (26)
Brown (27)
Nesmith (24)
Pritchard (26)

Honestly, at that point, Tatum and Brown are hitting their prime, and hopefully Nesmith is a really solid 3-D guy, while Pritchard is a nice backup point guard.

By then, these players will have hit these ages:

Giannis: 29
Embiid: 30
Durant: 35
Harden: 34
Kyrie: 32

That's what Boston should be building for. This window. Explain this to Tatum and Brown, and say whatever we need to do to get to THAT point with an elite squad intact, THAT is what we are going to do. Set those two up for a 5-year run of greatness. Anything that happens between now and then is bonus.

So you maneuver with the cap and such to set yourself up to get the roster in shape for that time frame.
 

8slim

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When he was hired Danny was the scrappy Celtic guard who bit Tree Rollins. (yeahI know). Ainge was always a fighter. And I suspect Brad will be too just in another manner so he can swim in shark-infested waters.
I had a Danny Ainge Topps Blue Jays baseball card when I was a kid, so I was keenly aware of his rep as a "scrappy" (a.k.a., kinda dirty but white) player! We're not really disagreeing, I suspect. I think there's reasons to wonder how Stephens will perform in his GM role, but I doubt his outward Midwestern niceness has any real influence.
 

radsoxfan

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I can only hope you are wrong about this - it is not a great way to deal with a very good coach. I have to hope that if Brad really wanted to stay on as coach he would have insisted on it. I don;t think it bodes well for the team if you are right about this.
Well Brad clearly said he loves coaching and would have happily stayed as coach with a new GM. So I’m not wrong wrong about that part.

But admittedly that’s not mutually exclusive with wanting a new challenge, preferring to try basketball ops, etc.

My gut takeaway was that Brad Stevens has not coached his last basketball game. But I guess time will tell.
 

BigSoxFan

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Well Brad clearly said he loves coaching and would have happily stayed as coach with a new GM. So I’m not wrong wrong about that part.

But admittedly that’s not mutually exclusive with wanting a new challenge, preferring to try basketball ops, etc.

My gut takeaway was that Brad Stevens has not coached his last basketball game. But I guess time will tell.
I would be shocked if he has. Maybe not be with Boston but he's far too young and too accomplished to give it up forever. Would be very surprised if we never see him on the sidelines again.
 

Garshaparra

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Pitino's issues as a pro head coach/GM was that he had zero patience. He actually drafted great. He just then traded those guys away.
Nice summary of Pitino's moves as a GM:

https://www.basketball-reference.com/executives/pitinri99x.html#:~:text=Boston Celtics Franchise (May 6,Bowen as a free agent.

Let's focus on just the 1st round picks, as the 2nds are all inconsequential:

June 25, 1997: Selected Chauncey Billups (1st round, 3rd pick) and Ron Mercer (1st round, 6th pick) in the 1997 NBA Draft.

* Billups was undoubtedly a good pick, even if he needed time to season. Ron Mercer...was not.

June 24, 1998: Selected Paul Pierce (1st round, 10th pick) in the 1998 NBA Draft.

* An all-time steal. I remember sitting there going "why is this Pierce guy dropping?". He was then not traded. This was a good move!

March 11, 1999: Traded Andrew DeClercq and a 1999 1st round draft pick (Andre Miller was later selected) to the Cleveland Cavaliers for Vitaly Potapenko.

* Andre Miller...we coulda had Andre Miller paired up with Pierce and Walker.

June 28, 2000: Selected Jérôme Moïso (1st round, 11th pick) in the 2000 NBA Draft.

* This now puts to rest any suggestion that Pitino "actually drafted great". He had 5 top 11 picks in 4 years, made bad calls on 3 out of 5. The trade of Billups is just icing on the cake that Pitino was a terrible executive.
 

Koufax

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In 2023-24, Kemba and TT are off the books. Here's all that's under contract for that year, according to Spotrac:

Tatum (26)
Brown (27)
Nesmith (24)
Pritchard (26)

Honestly, at that point, Tatum and Brown are hitting their prime, and hopefully Nesmith is a really solid 3-D guy, while Pritchard is a nice backup point guard.

By then, these players will have hit these ages:

Giannis: 29
Embiid: 30
Durant: 35
Harden: 34
Kyrie: 32

That's what Boston should be building for. This window. Explain this to Tatum and Brown, and say whatever we need to do to get to THAT point with an elite squad intact, THAT is what we are going to do. Set those two up for a 5-year run of greatness. Anything that happens between now and then is bonus.

So you maneuver with the cap and such to set yourself up to get the roster in shape for that time frame.
What about Langford (24)? I'd say he could fill the Smart role - tough D guy off the bench.
 

Gash Prex

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One shitty year during the pandemic and a lot of this forum was ready to cut bait on Stevens.

Danny clearly wanted to retire and Brad moving up gives them an opportunity to keep his talent in the organization and add new talent as a head coach.
 

Cesar Crespo

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In 2023-24, Kemba and TT are off the books. Here's all that's under contract for that year, according to Spotrac:

Tatum (26)
Brown (27)
Nesmith (24)
Pritchard (26)
And Demetrius Jackson will still be on the cap. Oi.

Langford and Grant would be RFA's as well.

That requires not re-signing Fournier, trading or not re-signing Smart and the same with TL. Not all of that is going to happen. Some will re-sign or be traded away for returning salary. They will possibly have some players from the 21/22 and 22/23 draft classes under contract as well.

They should still have money to sign a max guy though, as long as they are smart about the next 2 seasons.
 

Cesar Crespo

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One shitty year during the pandemic and a lot of this forum was ready to cut bait on Stevens.

Danny clearly wanted to retire and Brad moving up gives them an opportunity to keep his talent in the organization and add new talent as a head coach.
They wanted to cut bait on Stevens the Coach. I doubt many people were thinking of Stevens the GM. Most people here seem to have an open mind to it. There is some push back but it's mostly favorable.
 

benhogan

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In 2023-24, Kemba and TT are off the books. Here's all that's under contract for that year, according to Spotrac:

Tatum (26)
Brown (27)
Nesmith (24)
Pritchard (26)

Honestly, at that point, Tatum and Brown are hitting their prime, and hopefully Nesmith is a really solid 3-D guy, while Pritchard is a nice backup point guard.

By then, these players will have hit these ages:

Giannis: 29
Embiid: 30
Durant: 35
Harden: 34
Kyrie: 32

That's what Boston should be building for. This window. Explain this to Tatum and Brown, and say whatever we need to do to get to THAT point with an elite squad intact, THAT is what we are going to do. Set those two up for a 5-year run of greatness. Anything that happens between now and then is bonus.

So you maneuver with the cap and such to set yourself up to get the roster in shape for that time frame.
pretty much and if there is any way to jump-start that a year ahead of time by maneuvering contracts, do it.
 

Cellar-Door

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Nice summary of Pitino's moves as a GM:

https://www.basketball-reference.com/executives/pitinri99x.html#:~:text=Boston Celtics Franchise (May 6,Bowen as a free agent.

Let's focus on just the 1st round picks, as the 2nds are all inconsequential:

June 25, 1997: Selected Chauncey Billups (1st round, 3rd pick) and Ron Mercer (1st round, 6th pick) in the 1997 NBA Draft.

* Billups was undoubtedly a good pick, even if he needed time to season. Ron Mercer...was not.

June 24, 1998: Selected Paul Pierce (1st round, 10th pick) in the 1998 NBA Draft.

* An all-time steal. I remember sitting there going "why is this Pierce guy dropping?". He was then not traded. This was a good move!

March 11, 1999: Traded Andrew DeClercq and a 1999 1st round draft pick (Andre Miller was later selected) to the Cleveland Cavaliers for Vitaly Potapenko.

* Andre Miller...we coulda had Andre Miller paired up with Pierce and Walker.

June 28, 2000: Selected Jérôme Moïso (1st round, 11th pick) in the 2000 NBA Draft.

* This now puts to rest any suggestion that Pitino "actually drafted great". He had 5 top 11 picks in 4 years, made bad calls on 3 out of 5. The trade of Billups is just icing on the cake that Pitino was a terrible executive.
Ron Mercer was 1st team all Rookie and averaged like 17/4/2.5 with 1.6 STL his second year, he wasn't the ideal pick there, but he was decent. Then they traded him for a future 1st, Eric Williams and Danny Fortson.

He made 4 draft picks... he got 1 bust, 1 first ballot hall of famer, 1 guy who likely goes into the hall next year, and 1 decent player who he traded for more than he cost.

@Garshaparra
Yeah, but that 2000 draft class was horrid. Who should Pitino have taken instead?
Turkoglu is basically the only good player he passed on. Some guys who were below average for a lot longer the Moiso in there, but I don't think any of them were good.
 

Deathofthebambino

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Been on the road all day, and haven't read the thread, but IMO, this is the best of both worlds.

I think it was time for Ainge to move on, from about a half dozen perspectives (health being a huge one), and he does, under his own terms.

I was done, as most around here know, with Brad as coach of this team, but I've never questioned his basketball mind. The guy is smart and clearly understands the game, but he just wasn't the right fit to coach this team anymore. The players were doing whatever they wanted, whenever they wanted on the court, and I think Brad was too close with them, having developed most of them since before they could drink, to actually discipline them for doing something wrong. I think moving up to the front office will result in him having less of an attachment, and he'll be more cut throat than he would ever be as a coach.

If Marcus Smart is shuttled out the door, we'll know really quickly how he felt about him this season, and if he can figure out a way to move Kemba, I'll already put him in the upper tier of NBA GM's.

Give me Chauncey or Evan Turner, and I'll love this even more.
 

benhogan

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Is less than 18% of the forum "a lot"? (And less than 10% if we exclude those who only wanted to cut bait if the Celts missed the playoffs.)
agreed, exactly why those polls are great...slamming the rest of the board is silly

SoSH is by far the best place for all takes on Boston sports
 

reggiecleveland

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Is it racist that people think a baby faced white guy had incredible success in one of the most competitive fields in the world, and is not tough, not willing to make hard decisions? It may not be racism, but it's sure is something.