Big news hit Wednesday. Danny Ainge has stepped down as the President of Basketball Operations for the Boston Celtics after 18 seasons. Head coach Brad Stevens has been promoted to replace Ainge as the lead man in the Celtics basketball operation and I’m left with but one word: Intriguing.
Echoes of words from my parents during my childhood are suddenly returning. As a kid, bewildered as to why the Red Sox could never win it all, or why the Patriots couldn’t muster any form of consistency beyond mediocrity, my parents used to say, “They’ll never win until they have good ownership. Do you want to know why the Celtics win (in the '80's)? They have good ownership and good leadership.” My Mom gushed over Red Auerbach and with good reason.
Now we unpack ...
When the news first hit at 10:45 a.m. Wednesday, my first thought went to Stevens in the lead role. I literally said to myself out loud, “Hmm ... interesting.” Then I let that simmer for a bit.
I started thinking about Ainge, his stepping down, the timing of the announcement and his legacy as the Celtics President of Basketball Operations. Despite my dismay over his roster construct the last two years, as noted severaltimes in this space, including here: What's wrong with the Celtics? Watch the Bruins, I think he did a very good job overall. The Ainge Era in totality over this 18 year stretch has been a good one. Mostly competitive and the elusive 17th championship banner was delivered following some brilliant maneuvering by Ainge. They came close a few times after that and Ainge successfully rebuilt the franchise to a competitive level on the fly as its stars aged. They’ll be plenty of time for the eulogy on all the moves, misses, draft picks, wins, losses and acquisitions and Ainge’s legacy over the next several days.
Back to what my parents cemented into my head many moons ago. This story is about ownership.
At the press conference, one voice really stood out, that of Celtics owner and governor Wyc Grousbeck. The Celtics had strong ownership when Ainge played and they most certainly have it right now. Grousbeck, as he so often does sounded convincing. You can hear the belief and conviction of what he says. His fan-like passion brings energy to his voice that we as fans can all relate to, but the decisiveness of how he addressed the Celtics big announcement cut through to me and uncovered a few things worth noting.
Grousbeck “went on the record” that Ainge’s stepping down was “Danny’s decision.” He also cordially but forcibly made it clear, when a question was surfaced to Stevens about the idea of a combined role of head coach and personnel decision maker that “those are separate jobs at the Boston Celtics.”
That’s the surface level stuff though. What intrigues me is the eye for talent that obviously both Grousbeck and co-owner Stephen Pagliuca share. I’m sure neither of them are happy with the results of the 2021 season which ended abruptly Tuesday night. I’m sure they have their own opinions of what type of coach may or may not be needed to maximize the output of those currently on the roster. Despite whatever those opinions may be though, what strikes me is the idea that they see some untapped potential that can still be had from their trusted asset, Stevens. If you’re a Celtics fan, you should appreciate that.
When a team losses, what’s the first thing you hear from the fans and the press? You can’t fire the players, so you have to fire the coach. Sometimes that simplistic approach is what’s required but sometimes it isn’t. This situation is one where a little nuance was required and I think the Celtics brass made a calculated decision.
As a coach, Stevens’ biggest detractors would give him this, that he’s a smart basketball mind and the kind of coach that can get the most out of young talent. The results from 2014-18 would be all the evidence you need to support that. His basketball mind, acumen and ability shows the exact kind of intelligence that a successful personnel man needs. You better believe that Grousbeck, Pagliuca and Ainge identified that years ago. So when this day finally came, the ownership team had long since been prepared for it.
Every good business needs to excel at identifying talent. You need to find it, nurture it and groom it. It also requires a well thought out succession plan within all areas of the operation. A smart succession plan rarely ends badly. In regards to Stevens, perhaps we saw flaws on the bench this year and last that make one question how far he could take this Celtics team in the future. All of those questions raised are fair ones, as noted here: Regarding these Celtics, check please. But you’d be wise to credit the Celtics brass for seeing beyond the bench and into the young mind of its basketball savant.
The Celtics found Stevens, watched him grow and obviously made a decision to groom him long before today. Think back to the times when Ainge was questioned about Stevens’ job security as coach. What did he do? He sneezed it off most times. That’s because the Celtics saw something else. They saw the intelligence we all saw and made a plan to better use it. A smart succession plan for a new day.
That’s what good ownership groups do and that’s the story to me.