Coach, kids now see Stars
Stevens can bond with greats
The Celtics were happy as they bounded from the floor after last night’s 113107 victory over the Lakers. But not as happy as the two kids waiting for them in the hallway that leads to their dressing room.
The Celts came into the evening with a magic number of 1 to beat the Raptors out and earn their coaches the right to lead the Eastern Conference AllStars in New Orleans in two weeks.
And earn the coaches’ children the right to tag along as ballkids and the like.
So Braeden Shrewsberry, son of assistant coach Micah, and Brady Stevens, son of Brad, were leading the welcoming committee in the tunnel.
“And Toronto lost, too,” said Brady, noting now the All-Star berth had been secured even before the Celts took care of their business.
The C’s needed only to finish second to Cleveland to get their coaches the nod. NBA rules state that a staff can’t go two years in a row, and the Cavs sent Tyronn Lue last season. It was all about the battle between the Celtics and Raptors.
“I’ve been updated on the standings every morning for a couple of weeks now,” said Stevens … Brad Stevens.
Another little guy was happy, too.
“Yeah, so they should put me in the starting lineup,” cracked Isaiah Thomas after breaking his streak of 40-plus-point games by throwing in a mere 38.
“That’s going to be good,” he added. “That says a lot. (That) says we are winning and we’re doing pretty good, and to get there says a lot. I’m happy for them.”
Stevens wasn’t all that excited about the honor from a personal perspective. He said weeks ago that he generally tries to use the AllStar break to decompress with his family. His wife, Tracy, will be handling the logistics of a Team Stevens trip to New Orleans that coincides with Mardi Gras. The late NBA switch of the game site from Charlotte has made accommodations and flights difficult.
The best part of this for the coach — other than making his children exceedingly happy — is that it means the Celtics are playing well (six straight wins).
“I think the one thing that’s nice about that is, well,” Stevens said before interrupting himself. “First of all, it should be Ty Lue, but the way the rules work is it’s the next best record, because he did it last year.
“But what’s nice about it is there’s no politics in it. There’s no subjectivity. It’s what your team has accomplished, and that’s a credit to the players in the locker room.
“You know, I almost feel bad that I’m the one that’s going. I’d rather have another one or two of those guys playing in it. But our staff will really enjoy it, and our staff’s kids will really enjoy it, and we’ll go from there.”
There may also be ancillary benefits for Stevens and the Celtics.
As this possibility loomed, I was thinking people were making too much of the idea that he would be able to spend a little quality time with at least the East stars, if not the West crew, as well. According to this line of thought, he’d get these guys liking him as much as his own players do, and it would turn into a free agent recruiting trip with all expenses paid by the NBA. Sure, almost none of these guys are going to be free this summer, but some day … right?
But this seemed foolish. Players around the NBA have already been saying really nice things about Stevens. LeBron James has been gushing about him for a couple of years now. How much good could having Brad in the East dressing room really accomplish?
Ah, but then I spent a week in Georgia doing Falcons stories in advance of the Super Bowl. It was Dwight Freeney who changed my opinion on the Stevens/All-Star issue.
The former Indianapolis defensive lineman was part of the bitter Patriots-Colts rivalry, but he had no trash talk for Tom Brady or Bill Belichick in preparation of tomorrow’s Large Game.
Freeney spoke of his respect for their accomplishments, adding, “And they’re good people. I know both of those guys; they’re good people.”
We quoted him as saying, “Yeah, Tom’s a good dude, man. Whenever I run into him, it’s just much respect. It’s just normal conversations. It’s kind of hard, because you’re trying to hate a guy because you play against him and he’s playing on the Patriots and you want to crush him. You want to hate him, but when you meet him, you’re like, this guy’s a great guy. He’s a cool dude, man, a cool dude. I have all the respect for him.”
OK, so that means Celtics All-Star rep Isaiah Thomas will be able to do some more good recruiting, continuing to talk up his club as he did with Al Horford last year.
But what about the coach? Well, if you missed the story here nine days ago, Freeney said of playing for Belichick in the Pro Bowl, “It was the easiest process in the world. I’m thinking, ‘ Oh, man, we got Bill as the coach. He’s going to have us grinding.’ But Bill’s the greatest guy in the world. He was like, ‘Hey, guys, do what you want. Just make sure you’re in meetings on time.’ It was a great process. I love it.”
Stevens has no such image hurdle to clear. He’s already well-liked. But, hey, maybe some guys will want to sign with the Celts so they can hang with his son.