BRIGHTON -- The season is finally here. Perhaps one of the most anticipated Boston Celtics seasons in a while. But not for the same reasons as in the past.
There was buzz when Boston acquired Kevin Garnett. Buzz when Brad Stevens took over as head coach. Buzz when they landed Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis in the same offseason. This buzz is different.
If you had taken a poll two months ago, you probably would have gotten the most negatively slanted view of the Celtics in years. Some would have said they didn't plan on watching the team this season.
That's because they traded Jaylen Brown. Not only did they trade Brown, but they did so after the best individual season of his career. After the team blew a 3-1 lead in the first round to the Philadelphia 76ers -- the very team they traded Brown to.
From a PR standpoint, it was about as disastrous a summer the Celtics could have had. So naturally, the fanbase was down. People were livid. Understandably so.
The preseason helped reclaim some faith. I've seen it. In July, the comment section on here was full of rage and bitterness. Now, there's some hope again. Maybe that's just people excited to watch basketball again. But the Celtics certainly proved their competitiveness.
But preseason basketball doesn't matter. The Celtics' 4-0 record has been wiped clean, and on Tuesday afternoon, they start all over again. The ups and downs of the 82-game season start all over again.
Getting too high creates an easy path to being kicked off a pedestal. Yet living in the lows prevents growth. The Celtics choose to live in the middle.
"If you believe all the good things [that] people say, if you believe all the bad things that people say, [you] probably [have to] meet somewhere in the middle," Joe Mazzulla said at practice on Sunday morning. "I think that's the same thing on the court. Just balance. Having an understanding that, at the end of the day, there's a middle ground to really what's going on. Just kind of have to stay there and take the information that you have, and just get better."
In a way, what you did yesterday doesn't matter anymore. And to be even more extreme, what you did an hour ago doesn't matter. As soon as Mazzulla's post-game speech ends, so does that game, win or loss.
Over an 82-game campaign, that's important. You don't have time to linger. That leads to stagnation. And stagnation hands you a one-way ticket to losing.
"He basically just says you're only good as your next day," Baylor Scheierman said. "So, regardless of how it went for you yesterday, if you played well, you didn't play well. I mean, tomorrow's going to come, the sun's going to come up, and you got to get ready to go back at it again. I think he's really preached that and stressed that, and I think we've done a good job as a team, and then also individually taking that approach."
Balance is essential in all aspects of life. In all aspects of basketball. For the team, for the media, for the fanbase. Without it, things tend to spiral.
Overwhelming positivity isn't good for anyone. It's disingenuous. If the Celtics' defense gives up 120 points for two weeks straight, something is obviously wrong. It has to be.
Saying as much is part of my job. Just like it's Mazzulla's job to solve the issue before it gets out of hand. Before it costs the Celtics a chance at a deep playoff run.
But overwhelming negativity is just as bad. At its core, basketball is a game. It's supposed to be fun. Having fun playing it, covering it, and watching it is part of why people invest their time in the game.
There needs to be a mix. Breaking down the game is my favorite part of the job. Getting to show off small (or large) wrinkles the Celtics use to get advantages over their opponents. But portraying the negatives will be just as essential.
A lot of fans have strong opinions. Belief that the way the Celtics run things won't lead to a championship. That the 2024 title was luck or a product of the now-unattainable level of talent they managed to acquire.
Boston doesn't think so. The front office believes in Mazzulla. It believes that depth is the key to winning in today's NBA. It believes the moves it made this summer will help build a better future.
Leaning into their philosophies, it makes sense why the Celtics