“He’s as impressive as you would think,” Stevens said before the Celtics defeated the Cavaliers, 103-99, on Wednesday night. “It’s a credit to him that he’s had the career that he’s had. His physical attributes are incredible. He can really play with the ball, he has great skill, but his understanding of the game is at the highest level. And when you put that combination together, he’s been on one of the great runs ever, when you think of six straight years to the Finals, three championships, and he just continues to do it year after year after year.”

Stevens mostly dismissed his own role, saying he basically watched the players take shots at practice and then saw them again before the game the next day. Nevertheless, he acknowledged it was special to be alongside players such as James, even if only briefly.

Last month, Celtics coach Brad Stevens guided the Eastern Conference All-Star team, and that meant he was also LeBron’s James’s coach for a weekend.

James’s admiration of Stevens, meanwhile, is mutual.


“I’ve always been complimentary of Coach Stevens ever since he came into the league,” James said. “I admire what he did at Butler and I think he’s a great young coach in our league, and obviously it’s showing with this franchise.”

James also was teammates with Celtics point guard Isaiah Thomas at the All-Star Game for the second consecutive year. He said he has noticed Thomas’s improvements this season.

“He’s always been able to score the ball ever since he’s been in high school; it’s been well-chronicled,” James said. “But he’s running the team now. He’s putting those guys in position. Coach Stevens has definitely been a bright spot for him, as well. He’s a great piece to have. He’s a competitor. He loves to compete every night and you can respect that.”


No moves

The Celtics made a strong impression on Andrew Bogut, but the center ultimately decided to sign with the Cavaliers after clearing waivers on Wednesday. Boston is the only team currently among the Eastern Conference’s top five that did not make a change prior to the trade deadline or during the current buyout period.

The Cavaliers added Kyle Korver, Deron Williams, Derrick Williams, and Bogut. The Wizards added Bojan Bogdanovic and Brandon Jennings. The Raptors brought in Serge Ibaka and P.J. Tucker. The Hawks added Ersan Ilyasova. But Stevens said he is comfortable moving forward with the roster as currently constructed.

“I’m really excited about our team,” he said. “Listen, my job is always to focus on the guys at hand, and that’s what I do, and that’s what I’ve done. I like our guys a lot, and our guys put forth great energy. I think we have to play a lot better to be, you know, a better team.”

Green progressing

Celtics forward Gerald Green took part in a portion of the team’s pregame shootaround but remains sidelined with a bruised heel. Stevens said Green is “pretty close” to returning. Guard Avery Bradley remains on a minutes restriction as he works his way back after missing 22 of 23 games with a strained Achilles’ tendon. Bradley played 15 minutes in the first half against the Hawks on Monday night, and played 22 minutes of shutdown defense on Wednesday. Bradley also scored 11 points.

Assuming the Celtics can move forward with a healthy roster, playing time will be decreased somewhere, because they simply have not had a healthy roster this season. Stevens said Marcus Smart’s playing time will not decrease, and he added that rookie forward Jaylen Brown had done enough while filling in as a starter to have a strong case for staying in the rotation.


Gary Washburn of the Globe staff contributed to this report. Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at adam.himmelsbach@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @adamhimmelsbach.