Boston Celtics
“If I ever get to the purpose the place I begin basing my motivations on the expectations of others and other people I’ve by no means met earlier than, I will retire and stop.”
After a transformative summer season, the 2025-26 Celtics are set to start a brand new season.
There shall be loads of new faces in Boston because the workforce opens coaching camp on Tuesday, with Joe Mazzulla, Brad Stevens, and a number of gamers addressing a painful summer season and each the challenges and alternatives that await this season throughout Monday’s Media Day session.
Past Jayson Tatum’s ongoing recovery from a torn Achilles and Bill Nye crashing Jaylen Brown’s presser, listed below are eight further takeaways from Monday’s interviews on the Auerbach Heart.
Stevens isn’t placing a ‘ceiling’ on this workforce
A yr after the Celtics opened coaching camp as each the defending NBA champions and title favorites, expectations have shifted for Boston within the span of some months.
Past Tatum’s Achilles harm that might sideline him for many, if not all, of the 2025-26 season, Brad Stevens and his workers needed to tear down a majority of the roster because of looming luxury-tax penalties and different cap-related crunches.
Boston in the end traded away two lineup stalwarts in Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Vacation, whereas the workforce’s cap limitations additionally made the workforce unable to retain free brokers like Al Horford and Luke Kornet.
Regardless of that overhauled roster, Stevens stated that he’s no stranger to Celtics groups being neglected as title contenders — particularly throughout his early years because the workforce’s head coach.
“The one factor that I feel I’ll by no means take with no consideration is being within the combine and having an opportunity,” Stevens stated.”And so long as you’ve acquired the core that we now have, then we now have to do the easiest we will to to in the end get to the purpose the place we will compete at that stage, proper? That’s our North Star. And so, yeah, there’s no query. There’s motivation.
“I’m excited for the blokes — as an entire — however I’m actually excited for the blokes which are unproven. … Can you are taking what they’re able to and make it an each evening, constant, factor — and when you may have a chip in your shoulder, whenever you’re aggressive, and whenever you’re motivated since you haven’t gotten alternatives but? Some actually good issues can occur.
“So I’m to see it, and we’re simply going to guage it these first few months and see the way it seems to be, see the way it comes collectively. Be affected person with the truth that we’re getting some new guys collectively, however on the identical time, be very optimistic, not restrict us, and don’t put a ceiling on us.”
Cash performed into shedding Horford, Kornet
Boston’s offseason trades that offloaded each Porzingis and Vacation’s contracts had been a necessity, given the debilitating luxury-tax penalties that had been set to hit the Celtics’ fiscal framework.
However, talking on Monday, Stevens acknowledged that the Celtics tried to retain each Horford and Kornet in free company, even with their restricted cap house.
“We tried,” Stevens stated. “We supplied each Al and Luke the chance to remain, but when I feel you possibly can see the place our contracts had been with who we signed. We had been gonna be handcuffed across the aprons just a little bit.”
Kornet in the end signed a four-year, $41 million contract with the Spurs this offseason, whereas Horford reportedly signed a muti-year deal with the Golden State Warriors on Sunday.
“These cellphone calls are onerous since you’re not going to see these guys on daily basis, however you’re additionally, like, jacked for him to get an opportunity to try this,” Stevens stated. “After which Al, identical factor. We gave out a proposal, however there wasn’t any expectation that he wouldn’t take a much bigger provide elsewhere and go play, as a result of that’s his proper. He’s been nice for us, and we very a lot worth our time collectively.”
Mazzulla delivers one other traditional quote about decrease expectations
As anticipated, Mazzulla brushed apart a query concerning the presumed decrease expectations put in place for this Boston roster.
His summation of Boston’s outlook this season and the surface noise surrounding the workforce was on-brand for the extraordinary head coach.
“If I ever get to the purpose the place I begin basing my motivations on the expectations of others and other people I’ve by no means met earlier than, I’ll retire and stop,” Mazzulla stated.
“So, to me, you get up on daily basis and you’ve got a regular and expectation for your loved ones, in your family, after which whenever you are available, for the constructing. And no matter who’s on the workforce, that can by no means change,” he added. “It doesn’t assure you something. You bought to have the ability to push your self, you bought to have the ability to maintain your self to a regular and that’s not solely at residence that’s whenever you come to work on a regular basis.”
Jaylen Brown isn’t shopping for into narratives about being No. 1 choice
With Tatum sidelined, Jaylen Brown is anticipated to shoulder a lot of the scoring burden on Boston’s roster this season.
Brown isn’t any stranger to stepping up as a high choice — averaging greater than 20 factors per recreation in six of his 9 seasons with the Celtics whereas additionally taking residence NBA Finals MVP honors in 2024.
Brown was requested on Monday if the discourse round his means to be Boston’s high participant motivates him.
“To be trustworthy, I really feel like up to now, the surface voices, I’d be mendacity if I stated they didn’t inspire me as a result of they did,” Brown stated. “At this stage in my life, I’m undecided if I acquire motivation from that. I really feel like, possibly the narrative that we now have grown to see just like the one choice or regardless of the case could also be, to me, that’s by no means actually been a factor.
“I feel that’s simply solely — basketball, it’s not like that. Individuals who know the sport know that any given evening something may occur, and so forth. after which like you may have primary choices on offense, however you even have primary choices on protection and stuff like that. We solely deal with the offensive aspect of basketball, however what about protection? … We solely actually care concerning the leisure, concerning the highlights, the setbacks, the offense half, however you already know primary choice has to do lots with protection as properly.”
Anfernee Simons able to embrace new position
For the entire discuss of Boston’s offseason departures, the Celtics do have some intriguing new faces who may play key roles on this reworked roster.
Main the way in which for Boston is Anfernee Simons, who was acquired by Boston as a part of the cope with Portland that despatched Jrue Vacation out to the West Coast.
The 26-year-old guard might be a reliable scoring choice for Boston this season, particularly after averaging 19.3 factors per recreation final season and taking pictures 38.1 p.c from 3-point vary for his profession.
However, Simons must regulate this season as extra of a secondary scoring choice past Brown, whereas additionally fine-tuning his defensive recreation.
Simons — who can also be on an expiring contract — believes he’s up for the problem in his new environment.
“We’ve talked about it,” Simons stated of engaged on his defensive recreation. “It’s only a matter of if I wish to do it or not. It’s actually that easy. Coming right into a tradition like this, you may have to have the ability to adapt otherwise you’re not going to be within the place that you just wish to be in. Whether or not it’s enjoying or not enjoying.
“To me, it’s actually that easy. That’s the trustworthy conversations we’ve had about it. He at all times says that you just’re not as unhealthy as individuals assume you might be. That’s good to listen to. However I additionally acquired to do the work, too, to get higher on that finish and deal with precisely what we have to do on the defensive finish.”
Depend Mazzulla amongst those that are excited to see what Simons has to supply on the Celtics past his scoring contact.
“I’m excited to have him,” Mazzulla stated. “He’s been on this league a very long time and he’s proven that he can do some issues and simply brings one other piece to our workforce, to our roster. And once more, the message is identical. Don’t put your self in a field about how one can affect the sport.”
Sam Hauser addresses commerce rumors
It was an anxious offseason for a number of lineup regulars given Boston’s cap state of affairs.
Whereas Porzingis and Vacation had been in the end shipped out, different regulars like Derrick White and Sam Hauser additionally heard their title talked about in commerce rumors as Boston tried to chop down their luxury-tax invoice.
Hauser was candid concerning the actuality going through gamers underneath the brand new CBA as groups routinely have to chop payroll with every new season.
“In fact. You attempt to block it out, however you actually can’t, to be trustworthy with you,” Hauser stated of these commerce talks. “However I do know it’s a part of the enterprise. I used to be ready for no matter. If I used to be gonna get shipped, nice. I stayed, fortunately. I’m glad to be right here.
“However even when I had been shipped, I had no onerous emotions right here. They gave me a possibility when nobody else did. They prolonged me. They needed to do what they needed to do, and I understood it. However I’m glad I’m right here, to say the least.”
New rule modifications don’t change Pritchard’s method
The NBA augmented its rule book earlier this month, with missed end-of-period halfcourt heave makes an attempt not counting in direction of a person participant’s field-goal share in NBA video games.
That’s welcome information for Payton Pritchard, who has made it a behavior to chuck up photographs from lengthy vary on the finish of quarters.
However, given Pritchard’s knack for sinking these heaves — as seen during Boston’s title-clinching Game 5 of the 2024 NBA Finals — he stated that the brand new rule wouldn’t have modified his method on the court docket.
“I’d’ve taken them regardless, however possibly it’ll profit me in having a better 3-point share,” Pritchard stated. “Possibly it’s an excellent factor for me, as a result of I positively took one most likely about each recreation. So I’d go from a 41 p.c to a 43 p.c [shooting percentage].”
Josh Minott praises Mazzulla, regardless of calling him a ‘weirdo’
Even earlier than coaching camp will get underway, new Celtics free-agent pickup Josh Minott has already been impressed with Mazzulla’s teaching fashion.
However, the 22-year-old ahead Minott was additionally candid that a few of Mazzulla’s feedback and total outlooks will be … distinctive.
“Man, it’s wonderful. He’s inspiring,” Minott stated of Mazzulla. “In truth. He’s just a little little bit of a weirdo. He’s an excellent dude… From the month and a half of understanding him, I really feel like I’d run by means of a wall for the person. He simply has that impact on individuals.”
Minott was not the one newcomer to reward Mazzulla and his method as head coach. New huge man Chris Boucher stated that Mazzulla has already made him really feel like a key cog on the workforce after he spent the previous seven years with the Toronto Raptors.
Boucher stated that he was baptized final week, and Mazzulla was in attendance for it.
“Simply the truth that they confirmed that I’m household, brotherhood… It’s not straightforward to maneuver in and begin over once more,” Boucher stated. “However Joe actually helped me with that. Brad, too. It’s been a extremely, actually, actually heat welcome.”
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