3-time NBA champion distrusts Boston Celtics due to one nagging reason

3-time NBA champion distrusts Boston Celtics due to one nagging reason

Jayson Tatum

The Boston Celtics have gone 20-3 since the NBA trade deadline in February. However, their current record of 56-19 isn’t necessarily the best reflection of their championship odds. Despite their excellent net rating and redoubtable 32-7 road record, the Celtics seem to be less of a puzzle than 2023-24. They have missed various members of their usual rotation, including all 5 members of their star-studded starting lineup at various points of the season.

Jaylen Brown has been having one of his most inefficient seasons, while Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis have both missed time. While Holiday has been ramping up in preparation for the playoffs and Porzingis has recovered in time from another rare immunity disorder, the strength of the Celtics’ championship aspirations on the health of their most fragile players.

The team has Al Horford and Payton Pritchard in case one member of their starting lineup goes missing. Sam Hauser can also be an adequate short-term replacement in such scenarios. However, their ceiling is certainly significantly lower if any member of their starting lineup misses playoff games. The difference could be large enough to swing many of their Eastern Conference playoff series.

Three-time NBA champion Danny Green certainly thinks so, and he used this logic to explain why his belief in Boston is lower than his belief in the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers, who have a 60-15 record this season.

This is a controversial one for me, and I like Boston as a team – they’re really good. But I’m gonna give this one a red light (Boston going further than Cleveland in the playoffs). I just don’t trust Boston’s health. They always have some issues, they’re up and down.

Danny Green said

Kristaps Porzingis missed nearly all of the Boston Celtics‘ 2024 NBA championship run after suffering an injury in Game 4 of the first round. The Latvian staged a comeback during the NBA Finals, but after one of the best two-way halves in Finals history, Porzingis limped through the rest of the series having reinjured himself.

The Boston Celtics’ ceiling depends on Kristaps Porzingis’ health

Despite having 3 other All-Stars on the team in Holiday, Brown and Tatum, Porzingis is the ceiling-raiser for Boston. The former Knicks and Mavericks forward has the ability to capitalize on mismatches down low. His soft touch around the low post, mid-post and the elbow region gives Boston some unguardable offense. His paint presence and shot-blocking on defense gives them the vertical advantage they need.

Porzingis‘ presence will be doubly crucial if the Celtics are to get past the Cleveland Cavaliers. Boasting Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley in their lineup, the Cavs have the length and strength to dominate the interior against every other NBA team. They have a 60-15 record at this point and are odds-on favorites to beat Boston in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

Jrue Holiday’s health is another factor that will determine how far the Celtics bandwagon goes in the postseason. The 16th-year NBA veteran has had an up-and-down season for Boston on the health front. He has staged a recent recovery and is only just starting to get into his stride on offense. Him being able to attack the weakest opposition defenders will be another ceiling-raiser for Boston in the postseason.

All-in-all, the Celtics still have ample reasons to back themselves coming out of the Eastern Conference playoffs. They have more durable stars in Brown and Tatum and have more experience than the rest of their competition. They also have the wherewithal and the roster to be able to execute in close games.