Dwayne Casey fired

Dwane Casey fired by Raptors days after winning coach of the year

Just two days after being named NBA coach of the year by his peers, Dwane Casey has been fired by the Toronto Raptors.

The jarring news comes on the heels of a brutal playoff series that saw Toronto eliminated from the Eastern Conference in a fast and furious four-game sweep against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Basketball buffs had been expecting a shake-up of the team's staff after their excellent regular season devolved into LeBronto's graveyard — but still, canning Casey was a move that many don't get.

Casey, 61, is the most successful head coach in Toronto Raptors history.

During his seven-year-long tenure, he led the Raptors to four Atlantic Division titles in five seasons and helmed three consecutive 50-win seasons.

This year alone, Casey led the Raps to a franchise-record 59 wins in the regular season.

All of that said, he couldn't get his team to successful fight through its greatest post-season weakness: LeBron.

Fans are sad, but confident that Casey — himself a former basketball player and NCAA champion — will be back to work soon.

"After careful consideration, I have decided this is a very difficult but necessary step the franchise must take," said team president Masai Ujiri said in a press release on Thursday. "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 future," Ujiri continued.

"He was instrumental in creating the identity and culture of who we are as a team, and we are so proud of that."

The franchise has yet to announce anything about the head coach's replacement.

Lead photo by

Jesse Milns


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