Toronto Raptors head coach Dwane Casey had his share of critics entering and throughout the 2015-16 season, but has he silenced all his doubters after a spectacular year? Here’s coach Casey’s year in review.
Name: Dwane Casey
The Year That Was: Dwane Casey came into 2015-16 season with questions surrounding his job security and ability to get past the first round of the playoffs. The Raptors’ head coach resoundingly cleared up any of those concerns.
Despite rumours about the length of his tenure throughout the season and a team dealing with significant injuries, Casey’s team played well above pre-season expectations. The now-all-time-winningest coach in franchise history led Toronto to a record 56 wins and the second seed in the Eastern Conference. Casey not only got out of the first round, he went toe to toe with two of the best coaches in the NBA in Frank Vogel and Erik Spoelstra and came out victorious.
Not only has the team improved every year during his time in Toronto, Casey brought the team within two wins of the Finals, showing some of his best in-series adjustments in his coaching career. Further solidifying an already improved defence is the number one task for the defensive-minded Casey as the Raptors were 0-9 in the post-season when surrendering 100 points.
That’s What He Said: “You’ve seen the bad, the good. We’re sitting in a new facility that you never thought we’d see. This program has come such a long way from Day 1 to what we see now.”
Off-season Outlook: The first order of business will be retaining his staff as they will be in demand for lead assistant jobs elsewhere. Rex Kalamian will be linked to a role in Washington if he wants one as he has a history with Scott Brooks from his time in Oklahoma City. One of the most versatile staffs in the league was a big part of the team’s improvement.
Moment of the Year: There are so many it is hard to choose just one:
-Casey calling out the refs and being annoyed at the repeated questions he was fielding about LeBron James in the playoffs.
-Going head to head with an ornery Cleveland fan on the sideline.
The 59-year-old is one of the nicest people you’ll meet in pro sports but he really embraced the underdog mentality this season and was combative in defence of his team, willingly taking on all comers. His team embodied the spirit of its coach.
Grade: A+