The Celtics won’t just hit the ground running when training camp opens. They will hit the ground in a dead sprint.
The return of Xavier Tillman now means Boston has already locked up 13 of the 15 members of their championship squad, with only Oshae Brissett and Svi Mykhailiuk still out there. Both of those guys are looking for real playing time, so Brad Stevens will probably have to find a couple of other guys to sit at the end of the bench and wait for blowouts or injuries so they can see the floor.
The introductions and learning curves won’t be there like in almost every other training camp. Sure, there will be a couple of new assistant coaches to learn. Joe Mazzulla will take advantage of the situation to add new wrinkles (Jaylen Brown joked that they’ll be playing shortstop in practice because Mazzulla will take something from the Red Sox game they went to). Still, the biggest obstacles to early progress aren’t going to be there.
The Celtics are running the whole thing back, partly because it worked, and partly because they have no choice. They didn’t have a mid-level exception to give to anyone and they weren’t allowed to use the rest of their Grant Williams traded player exception. They couldn't aggregate players in a trade and they're not allowed to get in on any sign-and-trades, so they couldn't even make a Hail Mary bid on someone like Alex Caruso.
“It’s one of the reasons why last year was the time to trade,” Stevens recently said. “Now that you're over the second apron, you can't aggregate in trades, so both of our major trades last summer, that was part of it … it'll be interesting to see how it affects the league.”
It’s like running out of gas in a place you never want to leave. Or maybe driving to a place they know they want to stay, but filling the tank only enough to get there. Either way, they were stuck, but they were stuck with a team they know works.
That forethought gives the Celtics an advantage even as they navigate the rest of 2024 without Kristaps Porzingis. With Tillman, Luke Kornet, and Neemias Queta all locked up, they have options to throw at different types of teams. Are these guys, individually, a murderer’s row of big man talent? No. But they don’t have to be.
The continuity alongside all of Boston’s top-end talent means they have a chance to thrive. It’s not always about individual talent in basketball. As we’ve seen in teams that have beaten Boston in recent years, lesser talent that plays hard and together can be very effective.
Kornet can be effective playing next to Boston’s starters when he subs in for Al Horford. Queta has shown he knows how to rebound and defend the rim, and occasionally make a power move to the rim. Tillman’s switchability came in pretty handy in Game 3 of the NBA Finals, and it will again in the regular season. And not only will the skills we know come in handy, there is a chance to for them to grow and handle more.
Kornet is 28 years old. Tillman is 25. Queta is 24. They all went into the summer with homework and have the ability to add to their games. Maybe Kornet can get back out behind the 3-point line. Queta can work on his fluidity and passing. Tillman can try to hone his jumper and try to be a threat in the corners.
If just a couple of those things are realized, then getting by without Porzingis will get a little easier.
And it’s important to remember that Boston doesn't need to be perfect without Porzings to start the season. They just need to get by.
In that sense, there's too much attention to the singular question of “who will fill his role” and not enough to “how with the team make up for his loss.” The phrasing of that matters. The other four Celtics on the floor are pretty damn good and demand all the attention. It’s amazing how much better the fifth player on the floor looks when he’s ignored.
And if they lose a couple more games along the way, so be it. The championship has taken the edge off everybody (well, most people. The internet will make sure it’s not universal). The Celtics had a 14-game edge on the rest of the league, and even though other teams might close that gap some, the Celtics still have some margin for error. And their 7-1 road record in these last playoffs tells us that even if the loss of Porzingis, or some other misfortune, causes a more significant dip that drops their seeding to second or third, they are capable of snatching home court advantage back in a blink.
A little adversity might not be such a bad thing for these guys.
The Celtics are essentially running the whole squad back, and it’s going to make things easier for them in the long haul. They will have to fight the natural urge to get complacent, but there are enough adults in the room that they might be able to avoid falling victim to that over the long haul.
They were nudged by the rules into keeping this team together, but doing so was the absolute right move. If there was ever a movie that deserved a sequel, the story of the 2024 World Champion Celtics is the one.