.jpg) | |
| Detroit Pistons | |
|---|---|
| Position | Member of front office |
| League | NBA |
| Personal information | |
| Born | (1957-04-17)April 17, 1957 (age 68) Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
| Listed weight | 195 lb (88 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Union County (Morganfield, Kentucky) |
| College | Kentucky (1975–1979) |
| NBA draft | 1979:undrafted |
| Coaching career | 1979–2023 |
| Career history | |
Coaching | |
| 1979–1980 | Kentucky (assistant) |
| 1980–1985 | Western Kentucky (assistant) |
| 1985–1989 | Kentucky (assistant) |
| 1989–1992 | Sekisui Chemical |
| 1992–1994 | Isuzu Motors Lynx |
| 1994–2005 | Seattle SuperSonics (assistant) |
| 2005–2007 | Minnesota Timberwolves |
| 2008–2011 | Dallas Mavericks (assistant) |
| 2011–2018 | Toronto Raptors |
| 2018–2023 | Detroit Pistons |
| Career highlights | |
| |
Dwane Lyndon Casey (born April 17, 1957) is an American retiredbasketball coach who most recently served as the head coach of theDetroit Pistons before transitioning to a front office position with the team.[1] He is a formerNCAA basketball player and coach, having played and coached NCAA basketball for over a decade before moving on to the NBA.[2] He was previously the head coach of theMinnesota Timberwolves and theToronto Raptors, with whom he won theNBA Coach of the Year Award in 2018.
Dwane Lyndon Casey was born on April 17, 1957, inIndianapolis.[3] However, his family moved toMorganfield, Kentucky when he was three years old.[4] Casey graduated fromUnion County High School in 1975.[5]
Casey was a top recruit coming out of high school. He made the decision to commit to theUniversity of Kentucky. During the1977–78 Wildcats season, Casey helped guide the team to anNCAA Tournament Championship. He served as team captain during his senior year. During the summers, Casey worked several odd jobs to support himself, includingcoal mining andtobacco farming.[6]
He graduated from the University of Kentucky with a degree inbusiness administration in 1979, also receiving Kentucky's All-Academic Award that same year.[7]
Casey's coaching experience went back to his first coaching job at the age of 13 when Morganfield Baseball Commissioner Earl McKendree allowed the young Casey to coach a Little League team with kids just three years younger than him. He began his college coaching career in 1979 due to a suggestion made by his coachJoe B. Hall. Casey spent a season with Hall as an assistant coach at Kentucky. The next season, Casey made the move toWestern Kentucky, where he spent the next five seasons. Casey later returned to Kentucky in 1985 where he would take the role of an assistant coach and top recruiter.[8]
In late March 1988 while still serving as an assistant coach at Kentucky,Emery Worldwide employees discovered $1,000 in cash in an envelope that was accidentally opened. The envelope was addressed to Claud Mills, the father of recruitChris Mills, and the sender was identified as Casey. The University of Kentucky said that the evidence collected during the investigation was inconclusive, and did not prove that Casey sent the money.[9][10] The scandal resulted in Casey's resignation, and Casey was then placed on probation for 5 years by the NCAA.[11] The NCAA later rescinded the penalty after it was shown that Casey wasn't involved in sending the package.[12] Casey also settled outside of court in a defamation suit against Emery Worldwide. The case was originally for $6.9 million.[13]
After his resignation from Kentucky, Casey accepted a head coaching job in theJapanese Basketball League. During his time there, Casey coached for Sekisui Chemical andIsuzu Motors Lynx that his teammateJack Givens played for. While in Japan, Casey did coaching work for thenational team alongside longtime friendMototaka Kohama and veteran coachPete Newell.[14]
During the summers, Casey continued to work with theJapanese national team. In the summer of 1998 the team appeared in theFIBA World Championship basketball tournament, which would be the team's first appearance there in over 30 years.[7]
Casey left the Japanese Basketball League in 1994 after receiving an assistant coaching position for theSeattle SuperSonics. During his tenure in Seattle, the team won four division titles.
At the beginning of the2005–06 NBA season, Casey landed his first job as head coach for the Minnesota Timberwolves, replacingKevin McHale. Casey's overall record with the team was 53–69, and he was fired on January 23, 2007, after only a season and a half with the Timberwolves.[15] At the time of his firing, the Timberwolves were 20–20, he was replaced by assistant coachRandy Wittman, who went 12–30 for the rest of the season.[16]
During the2008–09 NBA season, Casey served as an assistant coach for theDallas Mavericks. During the2009–10 NBA season, the Mavericks won a division title. In 2011, the Mavericks defeated theMiami Heat in the2011 NBA Finals and won their firstchampionship.LeBron James of the Heat would later admit that Casey's defensive schemes for Dallas helped make him improve his game even further after that series.[17]
In early June 2011, theToronto Raptors decided not to pick up the option onJay Triano's contract. Casey was named the new Raptors head coach on June 21 and would run through until the 2013–14 season.[18]
Casey's first two seasons with the Raptors involved little to no success. The team exceeded expectations in the first season and underachieved in the second. The team failed to make the playoffs both seasons. During his third season with the team, it managed to set a new team record formost wins in a season, anAtlantic Division Championship, and its first playoff appearance in six years.
On May 6, 2014, a day after being eliminated from theplayoffs, Casey and the Raptors agreed to a three-year contract extension.[19]
On November 1, 2015, Casey surpassedSam Mitchell's franchise record for wins, getting his 157th againstMilwaukee Bucks with the score of 106–87.[20]
On March 18, 2016, Casey became the first Raptors head coach to reach 200 wins with the franchise in a 101–94 win over theIndiana Pacers,[21] and twelve days later, in a 105–97 win over the Atlanta Hawks, he coached the Raptors to its first 50-win season in franchise history.[22]
On May 1, 2016, Casey coached the Raptors to their first Game 7 victory in franchise history with an 89–84 win over the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the2016 NBA Playoffs and on May 15, he coached the Raptors to their first appearance in theEastern Conference finals in franchise history with a 116–89 victory over the Miami Heat in the second round of the playoffs, where they fell to the eventual NBA championsCleveland Cavaliers in six games.[23][24] On June 7, he agreed with the Raptors to a contract extension.[25]
On January 28, 2018, Casey became the first coach in Raptors history to be selected for theNBA All-Star Game.[26] On February 11, 2018, he celebrated his 300th win as a coach for the Raptors.[27] Casey's Raptors set franchise records for wins and points in the regular season as they finished first in the Eastern Conference. In the playoffs, the Raptors defeated the Washington Wizards in six games and were then swept in four games by theCleveland Cavaliers led byLeBron James.[28] Casey's conservative coaching structure and system was credited with developing the Raptors' younger players, however it did not fare well in the playoffs against theTyronn Lue-coached Cavaliers who were flexible rather than being consistent.[29] On May 11, Casey was fired as the Raptors' head coach,[30] shortly after being named asNBCA Coach of the Year.[31] He was named theNBA Coach of the Year at the2018 NBA Awards.[32]
On June 11, 2018, Casey was named the head coach for theDetroit Pistons, agreeing to a five-year deal.[33][34] On November 14, 2018, Casey returned toScotiabank Arena for the first time since being fired by the Toronto Raptors,[35] coaching the Pistons to a 106–104 win over his former team. In the playoffs, the Pistons were swept in the first round by theMilwaukee Bucks, while Casey's former team, Raptors, won the NBA championship against theGolden State Warriors.[36] On May 12, 2021, the Pistons signed Casey to a contract extension through the 2024 season.[37][38] On April 10, 2023, Casey stepped down as the head coach following the conclusion of2022–23 season. During five seasons as coach for the Pistons, he led the team to a regular season record of 121–262 (.316). He transitioned to the Pistons' front office.[39]
| Regular season | G | Games coached | W | Games won | L | Games lost | W–L % | Win–loss % |
| Playoffs | PG | Playoff games | PW | Playoff wins | PL | Playoff losses | PW–L % | Playoff win–loss % |
| Team | Year | G | W | L | W–L% | Finish | PG | PW | PL | PW–L% | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota | 2005–06 | 82 | 33 | 49 | .402 | 3rd inNorthwest | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Minnesota | 2006–07 | 40 | 20 | 20 | .500 | (fired) | — | — | — | — | — |
| Toronto | 2011–12 | 66 | 23 | 43 | .348 | 4th inAtlantic | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Toronto | 2012–13 | 82 | 34 | 48 | .415 | 5th in Atlantic | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Toronto | 2013–14 | 82 | 48 | 34 | .585 | 1st in Atlantic | 7 | 3 | 4 | .429 | Lost inFirst round |
| Toronto | 2014–15 | 82 | 49 | 33 | .598 | 1st in Atlantic | 4 | 0 | 4 | .000 | Lost inFirst round |
| Toronto | 2015–16 | 82 | 56 | 26 | .683 | 1st in Atlantic | 20 | 10 | 10 | .500 | Lost inConference finals |
| Toronto | 2016–17 | 82 | 51 | 31 | .622 | 2nd in Atlantic | 10 | 4 | 6 | .400 | Lost inConference semifinals |
| Toronto | 2017–18 | 82 | 59 | 23 | .720 | 1st in Atlantic | 10 | 4 | 6 | .400 | Lost inConference semifinals |
| Detroit | 2018–19 | 82 | 41 | 41 | .500 | 3rd inCentral | 4 | 0 | 4 | .000 | Lost inFirst round |
| Detroit | 2019–20 | 66 | 20 | 46 | .303 | 4th in Central | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Detroit | 2020–21 | 72 | 20 | 52 | .278 | 5th in Central | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Detroit | 2021–22 | 82 | 23 | 59 | .280 | 5th in Central | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Detroit | 2022–23 | 82 | 17 | 65 | .207 | 5th in Central | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Career | 1,064 | 494 | 570 | .464 | 55 | 21 | 34 | .382 | |||
Casey and his family have a home inSeattle, Washington.[40] During the summers, Casey likes to travel to Japan to help with basketball camps and coaching clinics.[41]
