NBA

Celtics' Brad Stevens Snubbed by Peers in Coach of the Year Voting

The 2017-18 Boston Celtics have defied expectations at every turn, but Brad Stevens did not receive a single vote for coach of the year from the National Basketball Coaches Association.

Dwane Casey, head coach of the division rival Toronto Raptors, won the award two days after his team was swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

The Raptors finished in first place in the conference, four games ahead of a Celtics team that lost star free agent acquisition Gordon Hayward in the first five minutes of the season.

Five-time All-Star Kyrie Irving has not played since March 11, nor has Daniel Theis, a fixture in the front court for the majority of the season. Marcus Smart and Marcus Morris were each limited to just 54 regular season games.

Despite all this, the Celtics have received huge performances from rookie Jayson Tatum and second-year player Jaylen Brown. Terry Rozier also made a huge step forward in his third season, starting in Irving's place in the playoffs.

Boston got past the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round and is up 3-1 over the Philadelphia 76ers.

The award's voters include all 30 head coaches of NBA teams, and only the regular season is taken into consideration.

Sixers coach Brett Brown, Mike D'Antoni of the Houston Rockets, Nate McMillan of the Indiana Pacers, Gregg Popovich of the San Antonio Spurs, Utah Jazz coach Quin Snyder, Terry Stotts of the Portland Trailblazers and Los Angeles Clippers coach Doc Rivers — who won a championship with the Celtics — all received votes.

Stevens will look to finish off Brown's 76ers Wednesday evening at the TD Garden after Philadelphia staved off the sweep Monday.

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