Top NBA free agents suddenly are interested in the Boston Celtics, and Danny Ainge believes he knows why.
The Celtics historically have had a tough time landing free agents, but they’ve signed Al Horford and Gordon Hayward, two of the top players in their respective free-agent classes, over the past two seasons.
And, as Ainge told ESPN’s Chris Forsberg in his excellent feature published Wednesday, head coach Brad Stevens has played a huge role in that turnaround.
Of course, the Stevens factor was important in the Hayward recruitment, as the star swingman played for Stevens at Butler.
It still wasn’t a lock that Hayward would reunite with his former coach in Boston, but Stevens helped make that a reality by going over how the forward could thrive in the Celtics’ system.
It was a pitch that looked something like this:
“It’s from a coach’s perspective, from how he sees this player fitting in. And Brad does it through video, he does it through statistics and analytics, and he shows it on the chalkboard,” Ainge told Forsberg of the presentations Stevens has made to elite free agents. “He shows exactly what he’s looking for from that player and how that player can be utilized.
“It’s not fluff. And I think the players see that. It’s not trying to make a case like, ‘You have to come here because of this statistic.’ It’s real stuff. And I think that that’s what players appreciate is that openness.”
So, get ready for that Stevens factor, 2018 free agents.
Thumbnail photo via Bob DeChiara/USA TODAY Sports Images
