Danny Ainge Credits Brad Stevens For ‘Amazing Job’ With Celtics

The Boston Celtics have rewarded the offseason efforts of the front office, leading the Eastern Conference (19-5) 24 games into the season while also recording an NBA-leading 13 consecutive victories at home to start.

Not content with the disappointing exit from last season’s playoffs, Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens went full throttle this offseason. Stevens led a complete overhaul, acquiring veterans Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday while also upgrading the coaching staff to support Joe Mazzulla before his second season at the helm.

“He’s done an amazing job,” ex-Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge, who holds the same position with the Utah Jazz, said during an exclusive interview with NBC Sports Boston. “They have good coaching, great management, great ownership, great players. Celtics top to bottom are sitting pretty in this league right now. They have shooting — maybe the best shooting in the NBA.”

Ainge added: “I like their team a lot.”

Ainge left Boston responsible for building the foundation that’s now an NBA Finals-contending Celtics team. When Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett were past their prime forms, Ainge flipped the Hall of Fame duo for first-round draft picks from the Brooklyn Nets, which became Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum. But from then on, Ainge couldn’t spot the right supporting cast to get Boston’s youngsters over the hump early in their respective developments.

Now, with Tatum and Brown both established All-Stars, the expectation bar is raised with a new-look Celtics roster that Ainge still has his fingerprints on.

“I love watching their team play,” Ainge explained. “Not just because I was involved with that team, but because I like who they are as people, as players. They’re not perfect, but they’re so good and so talented and so confident.”

So far, Stevens has proven to be aggressive in improving the roster, which is an ideal trait to have considering Boston’s title contention window under Brown and Tatum moving forward.

The Celtics have won their last four straight since being eliminated from the NBA In-Season Tournament.