With the preseason officially underway, the Boston Celtics have started on their path to defending their championship victory last season, where they defeated the Dallas Mavericks in five games. With opening night coming in just a couple of weeks (October 22nd), let's take a look at how the team is shaping up for the 2024-2025 NBA season.
The Starters
When healthy, the Celtics have arguably the best starting lineups in the NBA. Led by stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, the starting five is well-balanced and consistent on both ends of the floor. Jrue Holiday and Derrick White are two of the best 3-and-D players in basketball and are both a crucial part of the team's success. These four showed time and time again that they can rely on one another whenever their number is called, and are willing to sacrifice what is necessary to put the team first.
The only question mark is consistency at the Center position. Kristaps Porziņģis has had a long history of injury concerns, and Al Horford is 38 years old and cannot play in back-to-back games anymore. With Porziņģis out until at least December with an injury, the Celtics will have to rely heavily on Horford, to fill his shoes. Horford is still a very solid player, and is a tremendous leader for Boston, but he isn't getting any younger. Once Porziņģis is back, Horford will resume his regular role as the sixth-man for the team, but until then, Horford will have to step up in Porziņģis' absence.
As stated before, if healthy, the Celtics arguably have the best starting lineup in basketball. Though they all have amazing talent, the best part about this lineup is their willingness to do what is needed to win games. Head Coach Joe Mazulla is a very unique coach whose unusual coaching style would not work unless the team bought in. This Boston team does not care about stats but rather just about winning, which makes them lethal against any team.
The Bench
A lot of times, having depth within a team can make or break that team's chances of winning a championship. This applied a lot for Boston last season and fans should expect it to carry over to the upcoming season. The Celtics have multiple guys that can come off the bench and play significant minutes.
Center Al Horford is the sixth man of the team and is plugged in whenever a starter cannot play in a game. He is an above-average defender, a good shooter and the glue that keeps the team together. His experience and veteran presence cannot be understated and is one of the most important aspects of the Celtics' success.
Behind Horford are Boston's two spark-starters, one of them being Point Guard Payton Pritchard. Prichard is a shifty and quick player who can provide another shot-creator for Boston off the bench. Known for his miraculous half-court shots in the playoffs last season, Pritchard has the potential to take a real step forward as an initiator this season, especially with his confidence seeming to grow each year with the increased opportunities he's given.
The other spark-starter is Sam Houser. Houser is exactly the kind of player a high-powered team like Boston needs coming off the bench, being able to play 10 minutes or 30 minutes, it does not matter to Houser. Whenever his number is called he provides elite shooting for Boston, as last year he was one of the best three-point shooters in the NBA, (42.4% from the three-point line, 11th in the NBA). He also made huge positive strides as a defender, thus increasing his value and gaining more playing time in big moments.
The rest of the bench should be a by-committee style. Centers Luke Kornet and Xavier Tillman Sr. will likely be called upon depending on the opponent and how they match up defensively. Though the team is deep, fans could expect some flash minutes from players like Guard Lonnie Walker IV, Center Neemias Queta, Guard Jayden Springer, and Forward Jordan Walsh barring any injuries to the team.
Is It Enough?
Yes, this Celtics roster has more than what it takes to repeat as champions and defend their title. With the Celtics running it back with the same core, they should be at the top of the conference once again. Though the Eastern Conference has gotten better with moves like Paul George going to the 76ers and Karl Anthony-Towns going to the Knicks, the Celtics are the team to beat. True, they did not necessarily improve the team, but they did not need to. What Boston needed to do is secure its proven core and see if they can do what they did last season again, which they did. Opposing teams should be fearful of another full year of chemistry building and internal improvement from this Boston team.
The only thing stopping the Celtics from at least making it to the NBA Finals is health. Besides Porziņģis, the team was able to stay relatively healthy the whole season last year while other teams couldn't. This was seen all through Boston's playoff run last year, with a lot of their opposing team's players, more specifically their stars, being hurt. Of course, injuries are an uncontrollable part of the sport and can happen at any time but if the Celtics can avoid any major injuries going forward, their chances of repeating as champions are that much higher.
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Catch you next time!
-Matt Hylen
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