After a successful coaching career, Brad Stevens has served as Celtics’ president of basketball operations for 14 months. During that time, he has guided the franchise back to the NBA Finals for the first time in a decade and set up his team with a chance to contend again.
But what are Stevens’ best front-office moves so far? Here is one man’s attempt to power rank the top 10. (Yes, my decision to try this exercise screams that real games need to arrive soon.)
1. The Udoka hiring
When Ime Udoka repeatedly publicly criticized the Celtics early in the season, skeptics around the league wondered if the players would soon turn against him. Instead, they bought in. Udoka was able to maintain the locker room’s respect while creating a new level of accountability. He handled what could have been a disaster when Marcus Smart criticized Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. Udoka shaped the league’s best defense, turned around the Celtics’ offensive habits and brought the franchise back to the finals while maintaining a level of unflappability that was eerily reminiscent of the man who hired him. Stevens upgraded the roster in several places. That wouldn’t have mattered so much if he had hired the wrong coach. He didn’t.
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2. The Horford acquisition
In his first move on the job, Stevens shed some money, upgraded from Kemba Walker to Al Horford and cleared a path for Smart to start at point guard. Though the Celtics still had a lot to figure out once the season started, this trade set them up with an identity. They would be big. They would have capable defenders everywhere. They would surround Tatum and Brown with high-level complementary players.
Horford, reinvigorated by his return to Boston, gave the Celtics’ starting lineup a second elite frontcourt defender. Smart, in a new role, unlocked huge lineups that gave problems to the rest of the league. Walker bounced in and out of the Knicks’ rotation, more evidence that Stevens made the right call with his first major front-office decision. The first-round pick Boston gave up in this deal, which became Alperen Şengün, could eventually look bad. Still, Stevens needed to move on from Walker and wasn’t going to be able to do it for nothing. Getting Horford in the same deal changed Boston’s outlook. Getting everyone to mesh took time, but this trade set the Celtics on the right path.
3. The Smart and Williams contract extensions
Before the season started, Stevens reached contract extensions with Smart and Robert Williams to keep both players in Boston long-term. It didn’t take long for both deals to look like big wins for the Celtics. Smart earned the Defensive Player of the Year award. Williams played like a rising star when he was available. They accentuated Tatum and Brown on both ends of the court.
Viewed through a wider lens, the extensions allowed Boston to lock up its young nucleus for years. Stevens made that commitment last summer when the franchise was coming off a .500 season. The decision helped put Boston in a great, stable position.
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4. The Brogdon trade
Aaron Nesmith could still become a player. Daniel Theis is a solid backup center. The Celtics had to give up something for Malcolm Brogdon. Still, they were able to add the impact guard — and address a bench scoring weakness — without losing much from their normal rotation.
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The Brogdon acquisition could still go wrong. His health has been an issue for years. When everyone is available, the Celtics’ backcourt will be deep enough to potentially produce some locker room turmoil. The team still hasn’t really replaced Theis and could encounter some trouble if the backup centers need to play significant minutes. Brogdon, after years as a leading option in Indiana, will need to go back to a smaller role. If he embraces that and stays on the court, he should give the Celtics an all-around boost. The last time he played on a contender, he averaged 15.6 points and 3.2 assists per game while joining the prestigious 50-40-90 club. If Boston gets anywhere close to that type of efficiency and production from Brogdon, he will make a major difference. As well as the bench played late last season, the NBA Finals showed the need for more playmaking punch.
Derrick White. (Ezra Shaw / Getty Images)5. The White trade
By the arrival of the trade deadline, the Celtics had already begun their midseason turnaround by winning six straight games. They still wanted to improve the bench if possible. In Derrick White, they found a great fit — a complementary guard who can do a bit of everything but doesn’t seem to care about touches or shot attempts. He proved to be an upgrade from Josh Richardson on both ends of the court.
White crashed in the finals. His shortcomings against the Warriors were well-documented. He needs to grow more confident in his jump shot and more consistent as a scorer. Still, that shouldn’t overshadow everything he brought to the Celtics’ second unit. His versatility on both ends of the court allowed him to mesh with his new team right away. His combination of size, intelligence and savvy in the backcourt gave Udoka all sorts of lineup options. If this trade eventually falls apart, it will likely be because of the 2028 first-round pick swap that Boston surrendered to San Antonio in the deal. But White helped the Celtics surge down the stretch of the regular season. He delivered several big playoff games before fading late in the finals. At 28, he’s under contract for three more seasons, and there’s no reason to believe he will stop contributing soon.
6. Allowing Fournier to walk
Sometimes, teams make a good move simply by avoiding a bad one. Evan Fournier later said he wanted to return to the Celtics as a free agent, but the team instead traded for Richardson shortly before the free-agency period and declined to outbid the Knicks for Fournier’s services. One year later, his contract already looks iffy. The Celtics filled out the bench with better defenders on more valuable contracts and were eventually able to build a defense without any weak links. They also were able to avoid the luxury tax, which should give them a bit more flexibility moving forward. Stevens didn’t end up using it, but he was also able to create a $17.1 million trade exception with the Fournier deal.
7. The trade for Theis
I’ll admit it: I thought the Theis acquisition could backfire. Though he’s a trustworthy backup center, I believed the team could very well regret adding the final two guaranteed years on his deal. I was wrong. While in Boston, Theis shored up the backup center situation. After Williams tore his meniscus, the Celtics were fortunate to have a dependable replacement behind him. Theis averaged 18.7 minutes per game down the stretch of the regular season, then started five games in the playoffs during Williams’s absence. After Theis gave the Celtics what they needed, they were able to use his contract to land Brogdon.
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By moving Dennis Schröder in the Theis deal, the Celtics also were able to clear out minutes for Payton Pritchard. He proved to be a better roster fit than Schröder, who struggled during his quick stay in Boston. It was wise of Stevens to acknowledge the Schröder signing was a mistake and move on from the veteran guard when the Celtics did.
8. The Gallinari signing
Danilo Gallinari will need to recover from a torn meniscus suffered this past weekend while playing for the Italian national team. No timetable for his recovery has been announced so far. Whenever he returns, his combination of size, shooting and post-up ability should give the Celtics a different type of front-court option. Gallinari isn’t the best defender. At 34, he’s not going to get quicker after recovering from a left knee injury. Still, he’s a polished veteran who can put the ball in the basket and potentially change a playoff series. The Celtics shouldn’t need him to be an impact player every night, but he will help as long as he can serve as a curveball when they need a bit more offense.
9. The great Bol Bol salary dump
Obviously, I’m running out of transactions to rank at this point. That’s how I landed on a salary dump of two players who were never options to suit up for the Celtics last season. After trading Juancho Hernangómez and cash considerations for Bol Bol and P.J. Dozier, even though both players were hurt at the time, the Celtics then flipped Bol and Dozier to the Orlando Magic for some more salary relief on trade deadline day.
ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED? You probably aren’t. It wasn’t an impactful deal on the court, clearly, but helped Boston duck under the luxury tax.
10. The Johnson signing
Did Joe Johnson reshape the Celtics’ future during his 10-day contract last season? Probably not. But after two decades away, his return to the franchise was cool. It set up a memorable moment at TD Garden.
(Top photo of Brad Stevens and Ime Udoka: Brian Babineau / NBAE via Getty Images)
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