Boston Celtics head coach Brad Stevens has enjoyed a relatively stable and successful tenure at the helm of the franchise. On Friday after New York Knicks head coach David Fizdale was fired in just his second season, Stevens admitted to texting with the canned in-division rival coach.

Per Celtics broadcaster Sean Grande on Twitter, Stevens called Fizdale a “good coach”:

“I just wanted to make sure he knows how much I think of him. Everybody knows he’s a good coach And the situation is the situation.”

Fizdale's record with the Knicks through one-plus seasons was 21-83, with the Knicks owning the worst record in 2018-19 and off to the worst start in the NBA this year with only the injured-plagued Golden State Warriors a half-game better. While Fizdale was brought in as a “culture change” for New York, the Knicks were hampered by devastatingly horrid rosters devoid of talent, including an awful free-agency period this past summer where they whiffed on former Celtics point guard Kyrie Irving and his All-Star pal forward Kevin Durant.

Stevens and the Celtics had just visited the Knicks, too, defeating them at Madison Square Garden last Sunday. The Knicks are on an eight-game losing streak with no end in sight, playing the Indiana Pacers on Saturday and going on a west coast road trip next week. Former G League Coach of the Year Mike Miller, who spent years with New York's developmental league affiliate and was promoted to Fizdale's staff this season, will be the Knicks' interim head coach.

Boston plays New York just one more time this season, but Stevens can enjoy the pleasure of texting Fizdale without meeting him on the hardwood.