Celtics great Cedric Maxwell thinks Boston’s next coach should be a person of color

Having someone players can relate is an issue the former Finals MVP believes will help Boston.

After passing on an opportunity to interview minority candidates for the sudden opening of the Boston Celtics’ President of Basketball Operations position on Danny Ainge’s retirement in that role at the end of last season, the team has now embarked on an ambitious search to replace Brad Stevens as head coach after his promotion to team president.

And there are a growing number of voices advocating for a person of color to get that job, including Boston-area sports broadcaster and former Celtics champion Cedric Maxwell. Cornbread — as he was affectionately known as a player — talked about his feelings on who should helm the team he won an NBA Finals MVP with in 1981 in a recent interview with the Athletic’s Jay King.

“I think [hiring a person of color as coach is] important because if you look at the Celtics front office, if you look at most of those people who are there, who have been in the front office, ownership, everything else, those people aren’t of color,” he began.