The Boston Celtics are one step closer to returning to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2010 after they took a 2-0 series lead over the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Finals.They secured a 107-94 victory at home in game two on Tuesday night to put themselves in a commanding position.LeBron James' dominance in the east looks to be slowly coming to an end with his seven-year finals streak under serious threat.When the Celtics lost Gordon Hayward to a gruesome injury on the opening night of the campaign and leading scorer Kyrie Irving underwent season-ending knee surgery last month, nobody expected them to still be able to compete for a championship.But with Brad Stevens in charge, anything is possible with this team regardless of who they have on the floor.He has truly established himself as one of the best coaches in the league and his exploits in this year's playoffs have enhanced his reputation.The 41-year-old has been receiving constant praise throughout the postseason for the way he's managed to lead a young and shorthanded team all the way to the conference finals and on the brink of competing for the title.But Stevens recently stated that the praise he's been receiving has been "silly" and "uncomfortable" and it appears that one of the team's greatest ever players is in agreement with him.Hall of Famer Robert Parish, who won three championships with the Celtics in the 1980s, believes that the adulation the Boston coach is receiving is a little premature and over the top.

"I think he's getting a little too much praise," Parish said on Sirius XM NBA Radio, "but I like what he's doing. They giving him all the love like he won three or four championships. Come on, now. Win something first, all the love he's getting."

Stevens certainly didn't get any love from his fellow coaches as it was revealed last week that he received no votes from his peers for the National Basketball Coaches Association's Coach of the Year award, which came as a huge surprise.

Now in his fifth year with Boston, he's led them to four consecutive playoff appearances and is just two wins away from his first appearance in the finals without his two All-Stars.

"Don't get me wrong, he's a solid coach," Parish said. "I'll give him that. ... I'm not saying Brad Stevens should not be getting praise for the job that he's done, because I feel like he's done an outstanding job.

"I'm just saying the amount of praise he's getting, you'd think he won a championship or two. They don't give (Golden State Warriors coach) Steve Kerr that much love. Come on."

That could all change next month if the C's are crowned NBA champions and with the way they've performed in this postseason, it's looking like a real possibility.

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