Following yet another early and frustrating playoff exit, the Toronto Raptors have fired head coach Dwane Casey, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski:
Casey leaves with 320 wins as head coach of the Raptors, easily the most in franchise history. He took a perennial losing team to the playoffs in each of the last five years, which included four Atlantic Division titles.
But after finishing with 59 wins and the top record in the Eastern Conference, expectations grew for the Raptors. They were swept by LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the second round, and team president Masai Ujiri clearly decided it was time for a change.
"After careful consideration, I have decided this is a very difficult but necessary step the franchise must take," Ujiri said, per Wojnarowski. "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."
The Raptors will now have to find a new head coach, and it shouldn't surprise anybody if Ujiri takes a while to make his choice. Wojnarowski said Mike Budenholzer - former coach of the Atlanta Hawks - will likely get a close look. Team assistant Nick Nurse and Jerry Stackhouse - their G League coach - should also warrant consideration.
It was a difficult choice for the Raptors to make, but some form of a change had to take place. Despite five straight trips to the playoffs, Toronto only has four playoff wins to show for it. They reached the 2016 Eastern Conference Finals but lost to Cleveland in six games.
After going that far, the Raptors were expected to push LeBron and the Cavs even more, but they've endured consecutive second round sweeps instead. As such, Casey took the fall, and some roster changes may also be in order.
Given his success in Toronto, Casey will certainly be one of the hottest coaching candidates available. His tenure with the Raptors will never be forgotten, even if it ended on a bad note.