Little kid asks Brad Stevens to explain Isaiah Thomas trade

Brad Stevens made his first public appearance on Friday afternoon since the Kyrie Irving trade became official at the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield as part of their 60 Days of Summer series. It didn't take long for the head coach to be put on the hot seat about the deal, as one young fan named Shea asked Stevens a simple question in front of the crowd:

"Why did you trade Isaiah Thomas?"

Stevens handled the situation with plenty of poise in front of the eager audience.

"I think that's an excellent question," Stevens declared. "Here's what I'll tell you is that what he did in Boston the last two and a half years has been incredible. I said earlier what he's meant to me, what I think of him; How great he's been in the locker room, what kind of teammate he's been. Those are all really, really, really hard decisions.

“That's the hard part about being a professional basketball coach. I've stared at the wall many times and thought, ‘Man, having guys in college for four years and then knowing exactly when they're coming in going is a pretty good way of doing things.' That's a tough one."

You can watch the full Q-and-A below (the Isaiah Thomas question is at the 39 minute mark).