By Chris Robinson
The Boston Celtics have been a very special team to folllow for several years now.
They are always well-balanced on offense and play hard and tough on the defensive end, with games on their home TD Garden always filled with loyal fans.
The Celtics are coming off of 111-100 victory over the Washington Wizards, and are currently second in the Eastern Conference standings with a 44-23 record.
The Celtics’ title defense ended in brutal fashion last year, as they blew multiple double‑digit leads to the Knicks in the Eastern Conference semifinals and then got run off the floor in a 119–81 Game 6 loss at Madison Square Garden.
The series had already started to unravel before that, with Boston dropping the first two games at home, and then suffering the devastating blow of Jayson Tatum’s season‑ending lower‑leg/Achilles injury late in Game 4.
So, as Boston entered the 2025-2026 season without Tatum and other key veterans like Jrue Holiday and Al Horford, expectations were tempered just a bit.
But this has been an excellent season for Boston in many ways, including seeing Finals MVP Jaylen Brown leading the way with 28.2 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 5.1 assists per game while hustling on both ends of the court.
Derrick White (17.1 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 4.5 apg) and Payton Pritchard (16.6 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 5.3 apg) have also stepped up and played critical roles.
Center Neemias Queta (10.0 ppg, 8.4 rpg) has also filled into a new role after doubling his minutes from last season.
The Celtics have also received valuable play from Luka Garza, Jordan Walsh, Sam Hauser, and others.
The only injury Boston currently is dealing with is Nikola Vucevic, who remains out with a fractured finger (reassess in 3-4 weeks).
What to Expect
With Brown having carried the load, Tatum now reintegrating, and a battle-tested core, expect Boston to push hard when the playoffs come.
The Celtics have always shown an ability to bounce back and regroup as a team, and they always seem to end up in a compelling series, win or lose.
They have often had great playoff series against the Miami Heat, and they also have teams like the emerging Detroit Pistons, the Cleveland Cavaliers, and the Knicks too look out for.
Chris Robinson can be reached at crobinson@hustleboss.com