Brad Stevens is earning the recognition that comes with success

Last April, before a fortuitous draft lottery and before Al Horford’s shamrock tweet, another Celtics season ended in disappointment. Overmatched by an Atlanta team that had too much size and shooting for Boston to handle, coach Brad Stevens and his team were sent packing, another postseason marked by failure. But like he has throughout his coaching career, Stevens made the most of it.

In the press conference directly following a Game 6 loss to the Hawks that ended the Celtics’ season, Stevens spoke last. He articulated the optimism he had for his team, even in the face of failure: “For young guys, sour’s not all bad.” The third-year coach preaches a code of accountability that extends to all facets of the game. For the Celtics these past three seasons, accountability has meant both good and bad things, and most of that is shaped by the way Stevens coaches.

If last year’s accountability was nailing down what went wrong in a loss, from super-small lineup moves to poor offensive play all around, this year has been a revelation — accountability for one’s own skill and role on a highly successful team. It helps to replace Jared Sullinger and Evan Turner with Al Horford and a healthy Avery Bradley, but even more subtle shifts have allowed the Celtics to flourish this year.

Isaiah Thomas has found zen within the team’s offense; Marcus Smart is approaching full actualization with each passing night; Kelly Olynyk, when disengaged from NBA Street-style physicality, is a perfect role player. Stevens’ best quality is his ability to get the most out of individual players. This season, for the first time, that has resulted in getting the most out of a team — one that is a single win away from the Conference Finals.

I like to imagine that just as great players welcome new entrants into their ranks every few years, so too do equal caliber coaches. Because success in sports is measured in victories more than anything else, Stevens is not there yet. The Celtics just tripled their previous playoff win total under Stevens with a Game 2 victory over the Wizards last week, and that all-important number sits at only seven ahead of tonight’s Game 6. However, Stevens’ abilities as a strategist, both in-game and over the course of full series’ and seasons, put him in rarified air.

Trigger finger ready and patient, Stevens is keenly in tune with when and how to move on from one trick and install another. He brought Gerald Green back from the bottom of the rotation to start five consecutive games earlier in the playoffs, giving the offense space to breathe and eventually overpowering the Chicago Bulls. Then, in Game 2 of the Washington series, it was Marcus Smart taking over the lion’s share of minutes behind returning starter Amir Johnson. By leaning more heavily on the pick-and-roll and installing playmakers like Smart and Bradley next to Isaiah Thomas, Stevens coaxed a massive 53-point performance out of his diminutive star.

In a decisive Game 6 on Wednesday night, the coach was once again a step ahead. Stevens used the Wizards’ aggressiveness against them, managing triple-teams on Thomas by taking the ball out of the point guard’s hands. On many possessions, it wasn’t even Thomas bringing the ball up the court; instead, Bradley took the driver’s seat in the first half, and Horford’s play-making took the game home. Thomas didn’t even notch 20 points, but the Celtics won by 22. They will be at home tonight, hoping to close the series and lock in a trip to their first East Finals since 2012.

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In Game 6 and throughout the next series (should they make it there), they’ll have one clear advantage. Their coach has shown through three seasons and this breakout postseason that he can not only lift players to their maximum potential, but when a team is crafted with his egalitarian style in mind, he can work magic out of an entire roster as well. Stevens entered the 2017 playoffs as an interesting coach with something to prove. Regardless of what happens over the next few weeks, he’ll be leaving them at the top of the game.