Today we look at the reigning champion Celtics, a team that is making little changes and relying on worked last year
The Boston Celtics accomplished a feat this past season that brought with it bragging rights for their fans. By winning the NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks in 5 games, the Celtics won their 18th NBA title, the most of any franchise. It broke a tie that the team had with the Lakers since 2020 when Los Angeles won their 17th title. The championship was a long time coming for stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, a duo that has gotten close a number of times but fallen short up until now. The Celtics, considering the age of Brown and Tatum, are well positioned to compete for more titles in the years to come. So what have they done this off-season to prepare for their title defense? Kept the same team as last year.
You can make the argument that the Celtics' big moves are still the ones that preceded last season, when they acquired both Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday in trades that proved to be pivotal pieces during their championship run. This off-season was all about continuity and doubling down on the core of players that won the title for them. In fact, they have re-signed five players to extensions this off-season, showing that they simply want to run it back. The team re-signed Luke Kornet, Derrick White, Xavier Tillman, Sam Houser, and gave a max extension to Jayson Tatum.
These moves ensured that the Celtics have the same roster foundation for the next few seasons. This decision indicates two things to me. The first is that the Celtics feel that their window to win multiple titles is right now, and they want to keep this team together for as long as they can. The second, is that the team’s front office has a firm belief that the NBA’s salary cap is about to increase substantially as a result of the looming NBA media rights deal. Where other teams have shied away from entering the first and second aprons, the Celtics have ventured into that territory, with all the tax implications that come with it, because they feel that they have enough to win multiple championships.
In the draft, Boston used its two picks on experienced college players in Baylor Scheierman from Creighton and Anton Watson from Gonzaga. Both players were multiyear starters at college programs that do a lot of winning, and should mesh with the Celtics team-first culture seamlessly. Acquiring these players is huge for Boston as they provide cheaper contracts for players that can come in and contribute right away if needed. Boston won with depth this past season, so it should be no surprise that they drafted with that in mind.
The Celtics are also keenly aware that the East is getting better. Philadelphia added Paul George. The Knicks added Mikal Bridges and re-signed OG Anunoby. The Bucks have another year to formulate chemistry between Giannis and Damian Lillard. But they are still the team to beat in the conference because they have two elite wing players in their prime. They also have two guards in Derrick White and Jrue Holiday that can still defend at a high level. On top of all of that, the Celtics also have elite shooters at every position and are a spacing nightmare for modern defenses.
In a certain sense, you can argue that they are taking a risk by doubling and tripling down on the formula. But on the other hand, it is hard to argue when the team just won a championship with this group. I would look for the Celtics to be contenders once again, riding their championship pedigree to the Eastern Conference Finals at the very least. Without a doubt, they will be the hunted this coming season, and it will be fascinating to see how they cope with that sort of role reversal after years of being the hunters.
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