If the Boston Celtics go on to raise an NBA championship banner following the 2022-23 campaign — it’s a big if, of course — president of basketball operations Brad Stevens should be remembered for his offseason masterclass.
Unfortunately for Stevens and the Celtics, that was not reflected in the 2022-23 NBA Basketball Executive of the Year voting. Stevens, who swung a blockbuster trade for Sixth Man of the Year Malcolm Brogdon and signed Danilo Gallinari over the summer, finished in fifth place for the award.
Kings general manager Monte McNair won the the award after Sacramento head coach Mike Brown unanimously won the league’s Coach of the Year honor.
The recognition of McNair likely stems to his offseason trade for Kevin Huerter and signing of Malik Monk to build a team around De’Aaron Fox. McNair finished with 16 of the 30 first-place votes while his 98 total points ranked higher than Cleveland Cavaliers’ Koby Altman (66 points), Utah Jazz general manager Justin Zanik (20) and Denver Nuggets’ Calvin Booth (20).
Stevens received two first-place votes and one second-place vote for a total of 13 points. The voting panel consisted of executives around the NBA.
The recognition surely doesn’t mean as much to Stevens as it would to claim the organization’s long-awaited Banner 18. However, the fact the Celtics finished with the second-best record in the league and Brogdon’s level of success nevertheless makes it feel like a bit of an overlook given Sacramento’s previous struggles.
We’ll see if Stevens and the title-favored Celtics have the last laugh as they continue their NBA playoff run in the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Philadelphia 76ers with Game 2 of the best-of-seven scheduled for Wednesday night.
