NBA.com and Bleacher Report do not trust Boston Celtics to go far in the playoffs with the latter putting them in 19th place in their latest Power Rankings. This is because of the absence of Jayson Tatum and trade of core players, leaving only Jaylen Brown and Derrick White remaining from the starting five.
BR wrote:
“There really wasn’t another reasonable direction to go. Without Jayson Tatum, who could miss all of 2025-26, there was just no way to justify remaining one of the most expensive teams in the NBA.”
NBA.com’s John Schuhmann has a harsher assessment, putting the 12th best team in the Eastern Conference.
The current Celtics squad is just a shell of the team that they had in in the last three seasons, the one that won the 2024 title.
Tatum is injured although he might be back before the season’s end. Jrue Holiday, Kristaps Porzingis, Luke Kornet, and Al Horford are all gone.
Key additions are Anfernee Simons, Chris Boucher, and Luka Garza. Holdovers are Payton Pritchard, Sam Hauser, Neemias Queta, and Xavier Tillman.
Jaylen Brown has faith in self, whole squad
Critics are counting the Celtics out but Brown refuses to quit. There’s one personal statistic he’s holding on to since arriving in the NBA in 2016.
“I’ve never not been in the playoffs,” Brown said while streaming on Twitch.
“I have more playoff wins than 15 or 16 teams. I know what it takes. I know this group has it. I know what we can accomplish.”
They are emphasizing their defense during the training camp and head coach Joe Mazzulla said Brown has been effective in leading the team.
“He loves competing at a high level. He comes in ready, healthy, the best that he can all the time,” Mazzulla told reporters.
“If anything, he set the tone on all the intangibles — the way he’s been defending, the way he’s been rebounding, the way he’s been competing at a high level. He’s been tremendous throughout the first few days of training camp. A lot of it, just because of his effort. He’s done a great job.”
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