Brad Stevens Notes Crucial Element of Celtics' Title Pursuit: 'Bigger Than Themselves'

Bobby Krivitsky | Apr 16, 2024

Apr 17, 2022; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Celtics President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens. / David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

The Boston Celtics boast the most talented top six. But lacking in that department is not the reason Banner 18 doesn't already hang from the TD Garden rafters.

Along with the maturation of star wings Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, who led the franchise to at least the Eastern Conference Finals in four of their first six years together before both reached their prime, sacrifice has fueled the Celtics' success.

It began before this 64-win season started. Tatum called for a meeting between him, Brown, Jrue Holiday, Derrick White, Kristaps Porzingis, and Al Horford.

The conversation centered on the reality that from coming off the bench to not being in the closing lineup, sacrificing minutes, touches, and stats, and taking on shapeshifting roles from one game to the next, maximizing this team's talent required keeping what's best for the collective at the top of the priority list.

"Whether it's fair or not, me and JB are probably going to always start and always finish the game," voiced Tatum. "But we have to be held to a different standard and be able to be coached differently. Whether it's KP and Al, one of you guys may not finish a game, and you have to be OK with that."

Boston's top six have signed lucrative contracts and accumulated individual accolades; save for Holiday, what's left is to add a championship to their resume. And like the former UCLA Bruin, who recently inked a four-year extension to keep him in Kelly green for the foreseeable future, the Celtics recognize they have a chance for a legacy-defining run.

But building a dynasty starts with ascending to the NBA's summit this June. As the C's, who will have home-court advantage throughout their playoff run, prepare for the start of the postseason, Brad Stevens shared his thoughts on how his expectations for a team that reshaped its core, parting with Marcus Smart and Robert Williams to acquire Porzingis and Holiday, compare to what's unfolded.

"You can never expect that you're gonna be (a) 64-win team; that's a really hard threshold to meet, no matter how good you are," said the Celtics' president of basketball operations. "No matter how well organized you are from a coaching standpoint (or) how many options you have from a playing standpoint -- that's just a hard thing to do. So, I don't know that, that was my expectation, but being able to see what we're capable of on both ends of the court, I'm not surprised that we can be a really good basketball team. 

"That doesn't guarantee anything; you've got to go out and continue to play well and earn it and do all those things, but we've got a lot of good players that want to be a part of something bigger than themselves. And that was pretty clear from the get-go, and I think our job is to try to fit it all together."

Boston has done that well enough to register the highest plus-minus rating (11.3), rank first in offensive rating (122.2), yield the second-fewest points per 100 possessions (110.6), and the best net rating (11.7).

But that was in the regular season. The playoffs are a different beast. As Holiday told Inside The Celtics while discussing what he learned from his championship journey with the Milwaukee Bucks in 2021 that he wants to impart to his current team: "It's harder than everything you've ever done before."

The team with the most talented top six's willingness to sacrifice goes a long way toward leveraging that advantage to the fullest extent, giving themselves their best chance at ending this campaign with the Larry O'Brien Trophy in hand.

Further Reading

After Career Night, Reflective Payton Pritchard Discusses NBA Journey and His Ultimate Pursuit

'Nip That in the Bud': Celtics Address End-of-Season Struggles

Jrue Holiday on Celtics Extension: 'Try to Get More Banners, Get More Rings'

Aiming to Maximize Championship Window, Celtics Extend Jrue Holiday

Jaylen Brown Shares What Latest Milestone Means to Him

Celtics Embracing Challenge to Go Beyond Most Talented

Jayson Tatum Opens Up About Sacrificing in Celtics' Title Pursuit: 'It's a Process'

Celtics Maturation Molded by Experience: 'It Builds, Like, an Armor'

Joe Mazzulla Discusses Identity, Evolution of Celtics' Offense: 'Balance of Pace and Execution'