Toronto Raptors: Ranking all head coaches in franchise history
By Mike Luciano
2. Dwane Casey
Dwane Casey turned the Raptors into a consistent playoff team
Casey, who spent a decade as an assistant in Seattle, failed as a head coach in Minnesota, making him a somewhat controversial choice to succeed Triano as the coach in Toronto. While it took him a while to get going, Casey turned DeRozan and Kyle Lowry into starts, riding that dynamic duo to five straight playoff appearances, including the franchise’s first-ever appearance in the Conference Finals. Despite winning Coach of the Year, Casey was fired in 2018 after once again falling to LeBron James.
It’s easy to call Casey a disappointment for failing to make it to the Finals while leading some stacked teams, but he was the first coach to make the Raptors a perennial threat in the postseason, helping reverse the fortunes of a franchise that was either stuck in the lottery or knocked out of the playoffs quickly. Ultimately, the decision was a wise one, as they hired a certain G League coach that took them to the promised land.
1. Nick Nurse
Nick Nurse finally took the Raptors to the promised land
Nurse has the one thing the eight men who came before don’t have, as he was able to slide a championship ring on his finger. Sure, having Kawhi Leonard helps, but taking a team that had never even been to the Finals, all the while ending the Golden State Warriors’ dynasty. Nurse was a bit of a risky hire, as firing the most successful coach in team history in Casey to bring him in certainly qualifies as controversial, but he has proved the Raptors correct in doing so by winning 72 percent of his games in his first two seasons.
Nurse’s biggest asset is his ability to adapt. While he has played with superstars like Kawhi Leonard and a motley crew of above-average players, he has won with both alignments, which speaks to the fact that his acumen and tactics have played a huge part in Toronto’s resurgence. After literal decades without a consistent winner, Nurse took the best part of Casey’s system and expanded upon them while adding in a few interesting kinks of his own. The result has made Toronto a feared postseason presence, and Nurse himself a venerated figure in Canadian sports.
