The Boston Celtics have hired Butler head coach Brad Stevens to be their next head coach, according to sources.Stevens was the head coach of Butler for the past six seasons, and in those six seasons, he led the Bulldogs to the NCAA championship game twice.
Brad Stevens posted a record of 166-49 with the Bulldogs, including a 12-5 record in the NCAA tournament. Stevens also led his team to four regular-season conference championships, three league tournament titles and six trips to postseason tournament play. His 166 wins are the most for any NCAA Division I basketball coach over the first six years to start a career.
Both the Boston Celtics and the Butler Bulldogs are entering a time of rebuilding.
The Celtics recently traded their previous coach Doc Rivers to the Los Angeles Clippers in exchange for draft picks. Just days later, they also traded veterans Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Jason Terry to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for players and draft picks. The Celtics are clearly in a state of rebuilding.
The Butler Bulldogs are entering their first season as a member of the new-look Big East conference, and they will have to do so without their highly-successful head coach.
Stevens is a brilliant basketball mind and one of the bright head coaches on any level. Stevens will look to bring this brilliance to the NBA.
Faced with the daunting challenges of jump-starting a rebuilding project, dealing with a temperamental star who is coming off knee surgery, trying to continue the success of one of the NBA’s most storied franchises and trying to make a successful jump to the pros from college – as most coaches have been unable to do successfully -, Stevens has his plate full.
But the Boston Celtics and Danny Ainge are known for making decisions that improve the Celtics, although his current offseason moves may not indicate that.
All in all, Stevens is a risky hire that can go either way. As long as he doesn’t pull a Billy Donovan and bolt after 5 days, all should be well.
