Dwane Casey wasn’t fired because the Raptors lost to LeBron James.
Toronto president Masai Ujiri is a methodical and calculating executive; firing a coach, one who led the Raptors to their five best seasons in franchise history, in a fit of reflexive rage would be entirely out of character. Handing out a pink slip simply for failing to topple James would have been illogical and unfair too. The Raptors have hit a hard ceiling that capped the Celtics, Pacers, Bulls and Hawks before them. A lot of good coaches have seen their seasons end by James’s hand: Doc Rivers, Tom Thibodeau, Frank Vogel, and even Mike Budenholzer, who happens to be the first name to surface as a possible Casey replacement in Toronto.