The Boston Celtics roster was considered elite throughout the majority of the regular season in 2022-23. But in the postseason, Boston’s bench struggled, and the team’s depth was questioned. Now removed from the season, the Celtics continue to field calls on its roster as they are looking to improve.
This is despite an anonymous coach telling Heavy Sports Steve Bulpett that almost every team in the league would trade its roster for the Celtics. I find this statement to be pretty accurate, and I think it has a deeper meaning.
“Right now just about every team in the league would trade its roster for Boston’s straight up.”
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) June 16, 2023
- Anonymous coach
(Via @SteveBHoop ) pic.twitter.com/aLAwxNRcDk
The quote ultimately highlights that the Boston Celtics should have a championship by now but something is missing, and it could be a mentality problem. That statement should make it more clear to Celtics fans how embarrassing it is that this core does not have a title yet. The Celtics had more talent than any other team in the NBA this season, which makes it so frustrating that they bowed out in the Eastern Conference Finals.
The 2022-23 Boston Celtics didn’t prove to be a tough team
The Cs ultimately lost because they were not the tougher team, and they couldn’t get it done on the biggest stage. This is why the Celtics have been called frontrunners and given a soft label because they are just built on solely talent and they lack toughness in big spots. Although it is nice that the Celtics have an absurd amount of talent that almost the entire league would trade its roster for, the Celtics need more toughness. Sacrificing some talent for more toughness and heart could benefit the C’s in the long run. Although talent wins in the NBA, you also need toughness from your star players or your bench.
Ultimately, it will be interesting to see how the Celtic’s roster shakes out this offseason and if coaches would still trade their roster for it.