Dudley: Players Buzzing About Brad Stevens

Dudley: Players buzzing about Brad Stevens
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Chris Forsberg, ESPN Staff Writer




During a recent appearance on Grantland podcast The Lowe Post, Washington Wizards guard/forward Jared Dudley suggested that there's a "buzz" among players in the league regarding Boston Celtics coach Brad Stevens.

"I’ve been hearing great things about Brad Stevens -- that’s the buzz going around the league now," Dudley said. "Players, ex-players. I played with Jerryd Bayless, who played with him, different guys that have played for him. He, obviously, back then, he was a rookie coach ... but he was coaching like a vet. He knew when to give rest to the guys, not be in practice too long; his X's and O's; his confidence he instilled in his players; he was playing a lot of different guys. He just knew it. I think some people just get it at the young age. As you saw with [Golden State Warriors coach Steve] Kerr, he had a great team, but he got it.

"I keep hearing the buzz on [Stevens] a lot. He’d definitely be in my top two or top three [coaches you’d want to play for]."

The Stevens praise was spawned by a discussion about the Players' Awards of the NBA players' association. One of the awards that players voted for was Coach You Most Want to Play For, an honor that went to San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich. Dudley also invoked the name of former Celtics/current Los Angeles Clippers coach Doc Rivers before gushing about Stevens.

Dudley, who played for the Milwaukee Bucks last season, also praised Boston's offseason additions, especially the signing of Amir Johnson.

"How about Boston?" Dudley said. "Boston came on crazy at the end [of the 2014-15 season]. You know what you have in Isaiah [Thomas]. You know what you have in [Avery] Bradley. [Jae] Crowder. They [traded for] David Lee, which, hey, that's a good backup. And then you have Amir along with Kelly Olynyk and all these other players. And then, let's just be honest, can anyone say -- I know [Milwaukee coach Jason] Kidd's up there -- but is Brad Stevens not one of the best young coaches out there? I mean, come on, I'm super-impressed with him and how he does his play calling."



bob
MY NOTE:  The major obstacle to our rebuild was our ability to acquire/sign talent.  When Rondo got traded, the rebuild took a hit because he was our only all-star.  Maybe some of that shine has come off after his stint in Dallas but that still doesn't mean we have an all-star to attract other all-stars either.  Another speed bump to the rebuild was the signing of a college coach who looks like he's young enough to be a player.  He was a question mark, an unknown, to all of us.  If what Dudley is saying is true (and Brad did get some COY votes, so someone voted for him) then the rebuild is looking better.  Now, we've got Amir Johnson and David Lee coming on board.  If they have positive reactions to Brad that will resonate throughout the league since they are veterans who have been in the league for a while and have had a few coaches already. The players are like a fraternity, they talk.


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"Now, we've got Amir Johnsono and David Lee coming on board. If they have positive reactions to Brad, that will resonate throughout the league since they are veterans who have been in the league for a while and have had a few coaches already. The players are like a fraternity; they talk."

Great statement! So true. I bet even Gerald Wallace will have a lot of good things to say about Brad. There's no question that, along with the gradual accumulation of a roster that promises a high degree of coalescence, the hiring of Brad gave the Celts a jump start on the future.

Sam

You can bet that many NBA players outside of the ones who have worn Celtics green in the last two years are very aware of what Stevens and his staff have done and are doing in Boston.

Their feelings may not have all gotten into print yet, but I fully believe that we will see more and more good things said about how Boston is turning the corner in the NBA.

50 wins in 2016!!! 4th (or better) in the East, first round playoff series win (minimum) next spring. First or second in the East and playing in the Eastern finals the following spring. With no major injuries we are next season and then two good players from the Eastern finals in the spring of 2017.