The Master of Adaptation: Brad Stevens and Celtics Front Office Voted No. 2 in League Poll

The Boston Celtics’ front office, led by President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens, has earned overwhelming praise from its peers, being voted the second-best front office in the entire NBA in a recent league-wide poll conducted by The Athletic.

The poll, which canvassed 36 executives (including Presidents, General Managers, and VPs) across the league, factors in short- and long-term success, contract value, and the ability to navigate the complex constraints of the new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).

While the Oklahoma City Thunder—fresh off a championship and holding a massive stockpile of picks—unanimously took the top spot, the Celtics’ runner-up status is arguably more impressive given the strategic chaos Stevens orchestrated this past offseason. The high praise is a clear validation of Stevens’ bold, calculated, and often painful decision-making.

The Defining Moves: A Strategic Retreat

The Celtics’ high ranking is a direct consequence of a challenging 2025 offseason that saw Stevens make arguably the most controversial decisions of his tenure, intentionally breaking up a championship core to safeguard the team’s long-term future.

The executives recognized the courage and financial brilliance of the following moves, which were necessitated by the new CBA’s harsh penalties:

Move	Personnel Involved	Strategic Rationale Recognized by Execs
Trading Jrue Holiday	Traded to Portland Trail Blazers for Anfernee Simons	Shedding a large contract to help drop below the second apron and acquire a younger, cost-controlled scorer in Simons.
Trading Kristaps Porziņģis	Traded to Atlanta Hawks for Georges Niang and picks	Moving an injury-prone asset with a large contract to further reduce luxury tax exposure.
Letting Al Horford Walk	Signed with the Golden State Warriors	Avoiding significant future salary and accelerating the reset process.

The “Gap Year” Strategy

The key takeaway from the league poll is that executives recognized these moves were not a surrender, but a strategic financial retreat.

The consensus among the polled executives, as reported by The Athletic, is that Stevens successfully navigated a “gap season” for 2025-2026. This strategy achieved two crucial objectives:

1. Avoiding the Second Apron: By executing these trades, the Celtics dramatically slashed their projected payroll, successfully getting below the second luxury tax apron. This avoids severe penalties, such as losing access to the Mid-Level Exception and restrictions on trading first-round picks.

2. Resetting the Repeater Tax Clock: This financial reset ensures the team will have maximum flexibility and a clean repeater tax clock in 2027—the precise time when Jayson Tatum is expected to be fully recovered from the Achilles injury he suffered in the 2025 playoffs.

Navigating the Tatum Injury and Financial Constraints

What makes the No. 2 ranking remarkable is that Stevens achieved it despite two massive challenges:

• Jayson Tatum’s Achilles Injury: The team’s best player is expected to miss the bulk of the 2025-2026 season. Instead of overspending to stay afloat, Stevens wisely used the injury as cover to execute the necessary financial teardown.

• The Supermax Contracts: Stevens successfully extended both Jayson Tatum ($315M supermax) and Jaylen Brown ($304M supermax) in the two preceding offseasons. The ability to lock down two franchise cornerstones while still maintaining high-level financial dexterity is a testament to his negotiating and cap acumen.

Exceeding Expectations in the “Gap Year”

Despite the team being structured for a “gap year,” the Celtics are currently exceeding expectations and rank high in the Eastern Conference standings (3rd place, according to recent reports).

The high marks earned by the front office are also credit to the team’s ability to find value in the trade market and the development of internal talent:

• Payton Pritchard’s Emergence: Pritchard, a Stevens draft pick, has stepped up in a massive way, seizing the starting point guard role and leading to talk of a Sixth Man of the Year candidacy.

• The Simons Addition: Anfernee Simons has added scoring punch and youth, proving to be a high-value return for the veteran Jrue Holiday.

The poll is a powerful endorsement that the tough decisions made by Brad Stevens—decisions that initially drew criticism from some fans—were, in fact, the blueprint for maintaining the Celtics’ championship window well into the future. By pulling back financially now, Stevens has positioned the team to make a significant move once Tatum returns and the financial slate is cleaner.