5 potential replacements for Brad Stevens as Celtics head coach

1. Chauncey Billups

Chauncey Billups (+400) has the second-best odds of landing the Celtics job, and according to Yahoo! Sports’ Vince Goodwill, he joins Jason Kidd and Lloyd Pierce as candidates the Celtics are expected to consider for the position.

Billups’ personal connections to the franchise are faint; he was drafted by Boston in 1997 but only spent his rookie season there before being traded to the Toronto Raptors. However, as Goodwill notes, he has relationships with several players on the current roster, and he was always respected as one of the brightest basketball minds in the league during his days as a player.

He may not have as much coaching experience under his belt as Cassell, given that Billups has only served on an NBA sideline this season under Tyronn Lue with the LA Clippers. But there was a reason he’s been considered for several head coaching and front office jobs over the last few years: his high basketball I.Q. and high-quality leadership, both of which were synonymous with his playing days and even his time in the broadcasting booth.

Billups has been looking to make his transition to a more prominent role for awhile now, and the Clippers assistant job may have been the launching-off point. If Brad Stevens wants to find an intelligent successor he can help groom with an improved roster, Chauncey Billups needs to be near the top of his list.