The Celtics wanted a piece of the action as superstars from other clubs continued to be traded. Boston is probably better off for having (largely) missed out.
Many have questioned if the Boston Celtics’ new leaders, Jayson Tatum (left) and Jaylen Brown (right), were the proper ones. They appear to be doing well.
Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown gave each other an embrace shortly after Game 7 of the Eastern Conference playoffs concluded last month.
“They stated we couldn’t play together,” Tatum grinned broadly.
That had been the Boston Celtics’ biggest problem ever since Tatum, 24, and Brown, 25, took over as team captains prior to the 2019–20 campaign. They brought the team to within two wins of the NBA Finals that year—Tatum’s third and Brown’s fourth. Ever since, they’ve had to deal with doubts about Boston’s ability to be a championship-caliber team centered around them.
When the Celtics were 18-21 and on course to miss the playoffs earlier this year, such questions were the most prevalent and dominated TV panels and podcasts. Rather, a stunning comeback helped the Celtics advance to the championship game—against Golden State—for the first time since 2010.
The Celtics’ owner, Wyc Grousbeck, stated in an interview that “we definitely thought about and had conversations about trading for a number of the great players that were sort of thought to be available over the past 10 years.” “To say we never had trade discussions with player X, Y, or Z would be inaccurate.”
However, he continued, “it appears that we valued our guys more than the market did.”
Though it didn’t start then, the NBA has been pursuing the formation of “superteams” at the expense of continuity development and player development for the past 15 years. One notable example of this was the 2007–08 Celtics, who won a championship and added Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett to complement Paul Pierce through big transactions.
Since then, in an attempt to compete for mercenary championships, a number of teams have dug through their closets to obtain big-name talents, including the Celtics. This has happened at the same time as the player empowerment movement, in which elite players have attempted—and frequently succeeded—to be traded to teams that have other stars.
After choosing Tatum in 2017, the Celtics attempted to capitalize on the trend by signing Gordon Hayward to a large free-agent contract and trading for Kyrie Irving. However, the squad that exists now is the product of years of investment in young players. The Celtics have a foundation that defies accepted knowledge regarding establishing a winning team in the NBA, and they are poised to win a championship. Whether it’s due to good fortune, astute front office work, or both, the Celtics’ strategy is working.
The All-Stars Paul George, James Harden, Jimmy Butler, Kawhi Leonard, Ben Simmons, and Anthony Davis have all engineered moves in recent years. In order to get to Boston, Irving demanded a trade out of Cleveland.
The Celtics were almost always mentioned in trade talks when a star was said to be looking to get out of their current circumstances. Few teams could match Boston’s young talent or quantity of draft picks—some of which the team obtained in a stunning trade with the Nets in 2013 to build their own superteam.
Regarding the deals Boston was on the verge of making, Grousbeck declined to comment. The player appeared to decide on behalf of the Celtics in at least one instance. Indicating that even if Davis were dealt to Boston, he wouldn’t re-sign once his contract expired, Anthony Davis Sr.’s public declaration that he didn’t want his son playing in Boston made it less advantageous for the Celtics to part with their best players in a trade.
Tatum and Brown, left, were picked one year apart. Boston has been one of the top Eastern Conference contenders thanks to their development over the last five years, particularly this season.Give credit…Elsa from Getty Images
“I believe that if you get the right deals and feel like you’re close enough to winning, you want to trade draft capital,” Danny Ainge, the former president of basketball operations for Boston from 2003 to 21, recently stated to Sports Illustrated. “We can’t predict what would have happened in a different situation.”
Superteam wagers were successful in certain situations, at least temporarily. Under Leonard’s leadership, the Toronto Raptors won the championship in 2019; Davis helped the Lakers win the Championship in 2020. But the Nets only prevailed in one series of the playoffs with Harden prior to pushing a February trade to the Philadelphia 76ers.
The Nets had to part with 24-year-old center Jarrett Allen, who was selected to his first All-Star squad this season with Cleveland, in order to get Harden from Houston.
With Brown sidelined due to injury, the Nets’ lone series victory under Harden occurred against Boston in the opening round of the 2021 playoffs. The Celtics appeared to be lost in the superteam arms race.
Romeo Langford (2019) and Aaron Nesmith (2020), two of their most recent first-round draft selections, appeared to be misses. Hayward and Irving were gone. The Celtics had signed former All-Star Kemba Walker to a max contract to take Irving’s spot, but Walker had been sidelined by injury and was not playing well. Boston suddenly had the appearance of a club that had retained its youthful players, in contrast to the Lakers and Raptors championship squads.
Brad Stevens was named the new team president, and Ainge announced his resignation the day the Celtics were ousted from the playoffs the previous year. Despite having led the team for eight seasons, Stevens lacked front office experience.
Citing Stevens’s length of service with the organization and his “personal bond” with ownership, Grousbeck claimed to have approached Stevens about taking Ainge’s place. Stevens said he had discussed the idea of taking over the post with both Ainge and Grousbeck during the news conference announcing the change last June. He said he had told Grousbeck, “I love the Celtics.” My goal is to act in the Celtics’ best interests.
Ime Udoka was appointed coach as one of Stevens’s initial actions; this was Udoka’s first major position following nine years as an assistant. Grousbeck stated that he wasn’t concerned about Stevens and Udoka’s lack of expertise in their new roles.
“I specifically told Brad and Ime in person before the season started that I’m not worried about how this season starts,” Grousbeck recalled saying.
Numerous instances exist of successful sports owners advocating for patience but failing to exercise it themselves. With Tatum and Brown as their focal points, the Celtics largely maintained their belief that they could win as the season went on.
Did I begin to worry in the first half, then? Indeed, I did. However, I kept it private,” Grousbeck remarked.
Marcus Smart, left, has been an important defender and a vocal leader for the Celtics. Being the first guard to win the title since Gary Payton in the 1990s, he was voted the defensive player of the year this season.Give credit…Townson Winslow/Getty Images
The Celtics finished 33-10 and secured the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs following their 18-21 start. The majority of players in their finals rotation—Tatum (24), Brown (25), Robert Williams III (24), Grant Williams (23) and Payton Pritchard (24—were selected by the Celtics in the draft and are 25 years of age or younger. The 28-year-old Marcus Smart was selected as the defensive player of the year by the Boston Celtics in 2014.
It seems like this puts the Celtics in good shape.
The NBA will have crowned at least five different teams champions in seven years after this year. If the Celtics don’t win a championship this year, they may come to regret not dealing for Davis or another well-known player. After all, the Phoenix Suns, the top-seeded team in the West, came within two victories of a title just a year ago, when the Celtics were destined for mediocrity. However, they were eliminated in the second round of the playoffs.
If Boston prevails, though, maybe the next team that makes a trade attempt—Harden or Simmons, for example—will reconsider. The Celtics aren’t exactly the epitome of patience—a seemingly unlucky event ended their superstar trade talks—but they seem to be doing OK with what they have.
Not that Grousbeck wants to celebrate his success.
Grousbeck declared, “I don’t think anybody needs any advice from us about building a team.”
