With the season over, the Celtics reflected on the past, present, and future of the team on Saturday.
After fouling out in the third quarter, Jaylen Brown had given everything he had.
Despite 20 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists, the Knicks were up 35 and the Celtics’ season was effectively over.
“Losing to the Knicks feels like death,” Brown said after elimination. “But I was taught that there’s life after death. So, we’ll get ready for whatever’s next.”
Right now, the “whatever’s next” is a big question mark. Jayson Tatum may not return from an Achilles rupture until next next season. Brown didn’t disclose a meniscus tear that he’s been dealing with since March and he could potentially have offseason surgery. Rumors and speculation are swirling that Kristaps Porzingis, Jrue Holiday, and Sam Hauser could be cap cuts with second apron penalties on the near horizon.
After just a day to process the loss and the end of their back-to-back bid, the team returned to Boston and several players addressed the media with questions about their collective future together.
Holiday put it bluntly.
“We had a pretty good regular season,” Holiday said. “Obviously, took care of business there with a 60-win season [with] everybody fairly healthy…I just felt like we fell short.”
With the sting of a second-round exit — just like every championship team’s fate since 2019 — still fresh, it’s easy to forget just how impressive this squad has been over the past two seasons. It took over fifteen seasons for the Celtics to record back-to-back 60-plus wins. If it weren’t for the new collective bargaining agreement and its restrictions, it wouldn’t be inconceivable to run it back again.
We still have a really, really great opportunity and a great window to be successful and win a championship again,” Holiday continued.
“I think that we had the best team in the league. Obviously, we did it last year, but the chemistry that we built last season and then coming into this postseason and how we were feeling, I feel like we are disappointed in ourselves, and we let the organization down and the city down.”
For the veteran who has won two championships in two different cities, he has a keen awareness that opportunities like this can be fleeting. Payton Pritchard offered a more big picture perspective though.
“I look at it like the Spurs. You consider them like a dynasty. They never went back-to-back, but since they never went back-to-back — all those years that they didn’t win, are they a failure or did all those years help them win the next championship?,” Pritchard offered. “It’s about attacking the next year and the year after that and never giving up on trying to achieve being on top of the mountain again.”
If next season does turn out to be a gap year like many have suggested including CelticsBlog’s Jeff Clark, don’t be surprised if we don’t see either of the Jays on Opening Night. Players deeper down into the rotation could see more minutes early. Pritchard, the reigning Sixth Man of the Year, could see himself thrust into the starting rotation. Hauser could use the summer to heal from the back issue that plagued him all year and continue his improvement attacking close outs and becoming more than just a wing shooter. After years in development, it’s time to find out what Baylor Scheierman, Jordan Walsh, and even JD Davison can bring to the team.
However, the cold reality is that the CBA was built to dismantle dynasties. If Brad Stevens elects to go young, Boston’s aging core could soon be out the door. The Warriors and Nuggets know that lesson all too well after Klay Thompson, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and Bruce Brown left their respective teams as cost-cutting departures.
And then there’s Al Horford, the venerable pillar of Banner 18. He enters free agency at age-39 with plenty of gas in the tank. It’s impossible to think of #42 suiting up in anything other than the green and white, but timing and tax penalties could dictate not just the front office’s decision, but his as well.
On Saturday, Horford was asked about his plans.
“For me, it’s just too soon to talk about that stuff,” Horford said of his looming free agency. “I’ll take some time here with my wife, with my kids. It’s not even been a day. There’s still a lot for me to process, just feeling everything out from last night. That was difficult.”
Whether he’s back in Boston is a question for another day. It’s clear though that he’s had a lasting impact on not just the outcome on the parquet, but his impression on Celtic Pride.
But, perhaps even more important than his on-court impact has been his steady presence in the locker room.
“You can’t replace Al,” said Payton Pritchard. “So, I definitely hope we get that figured out. Because his locker room presence alone is just crucial, and then having him on the court. For all the young guys, just to see how he goes about his business, how professional he is. He’s just a leader.”
Horford was nominated for the NBA’s Teammate of the Year Award for the second consecutive season. He ultimately didn’t win the award — but in his teammates’ eyes, it didn’t matter.
“Al’s about as good a teammate as I’ve ever seen,” Luke Kornet said. “Honestly, the best one I’ve ever seen.”
His presence permeated its way into all his teammates and if Boston is to rebound quickly from this devasting end, it would behoove Stevens to try to replicate the culture that’s been in the room since he started.
“I really like the competitive character of all the guys in the room. Team to team, there can be a wide range of things, but the amount of friction you have with guys ultimately trying to do whatever it takes to win is very low and I feel like everyone is so willing to buy into whatever that takes and whatever it seems to be for the situation,” Luke Kornet said of this year’s team. “Up and down the roster, everyone is playing to win and for the team’s success, and I feel like that’s a pretty rare thing to have.”
After the Celtics season ended in 2021, Stevens made the move from the bench to the front office and two weeks later with the playoffs still in full swing, he made the shrewd trade of bringing back Horford from Oklahoma City for Kemba Walker and a first round pick. That move would usher in a series of trades that would eventually culminate in a championship in 2024.
For now, there’s no telling what Boston’s future holds. The first domino could be as seemingly inconsequential as that perceived salary dump of Walker. But as well as he understands building a basketball team in terms of Xs and Os, Stevens is also a meticulous judge of character and what it means to play here. Don’t think that this summer will only have the salary cap and balance books in mind.
“We always want to represent the Celtics and Boston in the best way possible,” Horford said. “When we play and we’re out there, we want to make sure that we reflect the city and the people and the fans.”
