NBA coaches awarded the Raptors’ Dwane Casey their Coach of the Year (not to be confused with the media-chosen Coach of the Year, the more prominent honor). The 76ers’ Brett Brown, Rockets’ Mike D’Antoni, Pacers’ Nate McMillan, Spurs’ Gregg Popovich, Clippers’ Doc Rivers, Jazz’s Quin Snyder and Trail Blazers’ Terry Stotts also received votes.
But the Celtics’ Brad Stevens didn’t – which sparked a dumb controversy.
This is the peril of a one-line ballot, which the coaches used. It’s probably not a good way to pick the winner. It’s definitely a terrible way to rank coaches – which, to be fair, the coaches weren’t trying to do. Every single one of them might think Stevens did the second-best job this year. That could even more impressive than the support Casey received. But if that’s the case, Stevens would still receive zero votes (unlike the media ballot, which calls for voters to rank their first, second and third choices).
Simply, the issue is the award format, not necessarily the amount of respect Stevens draws from his peers.
Jay King of The Athletic:
Humble Brad would have voted himself last in Coach of the Year voting. "I looked at the sheet and there’s no way that I would have voted for me over any of the other 29 people." pic.twitter.com/HeKu6TAYQp
— Jay King (@ByJayKing) May 9, 2018
Could an all-powerful god make a rock so heavy he couldn’t move it?
Put another way for Stevens zealots: If Stevens is the NBA’s best coach and does everything right, how can he deserve a Coach of the Year award he says he doesn’t deserve?