On Wednesday, Toronto Raptors head coach Dwane Casey was voted "Coach of the Year" by his fellow NBA coaches after leading his team to an Eastern Conference-best 59-23 record, the best mark in franchise history.
Today, Casey has been fired.
According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, the Raptors have decided to fire Casey following another four-game sweep at the hands of LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. In the days since the elimination game, there had been speculation that Casey would be the one to go, rather than trading one of their All-Star guards, DeMar DeRozan or Kyle Lowry. Toronto may still shake things up in the off-season but Casey won't be around for any of that.
Raptors President Masai Ujiri released a statement today regarding the decision to relieve Dwane Casey of his coaching duties.
"After careful consideration, I have decided this is a very difficult but necessary step the franchise must take. As a team, we are constantly trying to grow and improve in order to get to the next level. We celebrate everything Dwane has done for the organization, we thank him, and we wish him nothing but the best in the future. He was instrumental in creating the identity and culture of who we are as a team, an we are so proud of that."
During his tenure in Toronto, which began in 2011, Casey has guided the Raptors to five straight playoff appearances, four Atlantic Division titles and three consecutive 50-win seasons.
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