Celtics' Brad Stevens named NBA Executive of the Year

BOSTON -- The Celtics hope to take home an NBA Finals trophy in June. For now, Brad Stevens has already earned some hardware.

The Celtics' president of basketball operations was named the NBA's Executive of the Year on Tuesday, after his third season running Boston's front office.

Stevens thanked the organization for all its support -- from Celtics owners to players, coaches, and support staffers -- but made it clear that his focus at the moment is on Boston's current playoff series against the Miami Heat.

"I am so thankful to work for the Celtics," Stevens said in a release Tuesday. "Our ownership group has given us the support and resources to build this team. The players, coaches, front office, and support staff are amazing - superstars in their jobs across the board. This recognition has everything to do with the team, and nothing to do with any one individual. Great teams require that everyone in the building is fully committed to each other and moving in one direction. With that in mind, we are onto Game 5!"

Stevens played a major role in the team finishing 64-18 this season, 14 games better than any other Eastern Conference team and seven games better than any Western Conference team. 

Stevens locked up Jaylen Brown to a long-term, record-setting deal last summer and also traded away team leader Marcus Smart to add Kristaps Porzingis to the roster. Stevens also pulled the trigger on a trade that sent promising but oft-injured big man Robert Williams, last year's Sixth Man of the Year Malcolm Brogdon, and a pair of draft picks to Portland in order to acquire Jrue Holiday.

The Holiday acquisition came after the Bucks had acquired Damian Lillard, a move that was supposed to shift the balance of power in the Eastern Conference in Milwaukee's favor. Yet Holiday fit in seamlessly with the Celtics on both ends of the floor, and the Bucks finished 15 games behind the Celtics in the standings.

Stevens won this award in blowout fashion, earning 101 voting points, with 16 of 29 voters giving Stevens a first-place vote. Oklahoma City's Sam Presti finished second with 47 voting points, while Presti and Minnesota's Tim Connelly received the second-most first-place votes with four apiece.

Since making the shift from coaching to the front office in 2021 following the departure of Danny Ainge, some fans have continued to push for Stevens to return to coaching. Those calls were particularly loud after the abrupt suspension of Ime Udoka before the 2022-23 season. This accolade is likely to silence any such conversations for the foreseeable future.