BOSTON — After months of change, heartache, and goodbyes, the new Boston Celtics are finally here. Preseason basketball is one thing, but Opening Night is another.
The chill of October air as the heat of summer officially vacates New England. The screams of thousands of Celtics fans as they enter TD Garden and filter into the various bars on and around Causeway. It’s a beautiful sight to behold.
But the aforementioned changes cannot be ignored. As the sights, smells, and sounds roll through Boston on Wednesday night, the unnerving reality of a second-apron-induced evolution will quickly sink in.
No Al Horford. No Jrue Holiday. No Kristaps Porzingis. No Luke Kornet.
And after an Achilles rupture in the postseason last year, no Jayson Tatum.
Celtics fans will get to enjoy the unexpected
Yet as the clock inches closer and closer to tip-off against Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers, the Celtics aren’t phased. They’ve pushed through the roster alterations. They’ve adjusted to a new play style. They’re just ready to play basketball. And the preparation for the new year isn’t any different.
“It's pretty much the same,” Neemias Queta said of the mental preparation. “It's basketball, at the end of day. It's what I know how to do best. Go out there, play freely, and then live with the results.”
Boston has spent the preseason implementing the necessary changes to make its new roster work. A fast-paced offense. A chaotic, risk-heavy defense. Their style of play will look far different from the teams of years past.
But the core principles of Celtics basketball remain.
For Joe Mazzulla, that mindset, that brand, will stay in place no matter what five guys are on the floor wearing green. And it all shifts in an instant.
“Every year is going to be different because of the type of team that you have, the opportunity that you have, the system that you play,” he said. “I think at the end of the day, what I've learned most is, by the time the game starts, you have to be ready to go to something that you may not even have talked about. There's a plan, and most games go the opposite way halfway through the game.”
This season is no different.
“There are non-negotiables and a structure to a game, but the game is really reads and your ability to make a quick decision in real time based on the information, not only that you have from the data and the analytics of a long time, but the information and the data that the last 10 possessions have given you, or the first half has given you,” Mazzulla continued.
“So, it's just kind of being prepared for the unknown and embracing that, and kind of being ready to make quick decisions as best you can. I think that's something that you really learn and kind of lean into as much as you can.”
Training camp was spent preparing. Multiple people called it the hardest camp they’ve endured in their careers, though Mazzulla chalked that up to recency bias.
He’s the same Joe. The same coach who has instilled his ideals in this organization for the last three years. Just because the personnel in front of him has changed doesn’t mean his style has.
“Joe’s always been hard on us, the last couple of years as well,” said Queta. “I think this year, we got a little bit more excitement. A lot of new guys on the team. So, it’s more that than anything.”
That excitement is palpable. However, this season’s Opening Night won’t be able to match last year’s. “Obviously, last year, the first game was a little different,” said Derrick White, thinking back to getting his 2024 NBA Championship ring.
But no matter what, Opening Night carries a special feeling to it.
“I think it's just an excitement going into the year,” said White. “It's kind of like that first day of school. Just excited to get the year going, started, to see how the team goes. And so, I don't think it changes from year to year.
“I mean, obviously, rookie year, you're kind of like eyes wide open, but other than that, you're excited to start the year, excited to get out there and compete and play the game you love.”
TD Garden has already opened its doors for Celtics basketball twice in October. But Thursday night will be different. Incomparable.
Though the sting of loss may still burn from a summer of trades and free agency departures, there are plenty of storylines to track.
What does Queta look like in a potential starting role? Can Hugo Gonzalez play legitimate NBA minutes right away? Will Josh Minott continue to build on the role he carved out in the preseason? How will Jaylen Brown fare as a No. 1 option?
The Celtics of the last few seasons came with a certain flair. Certain expectations. It was championship or bust. It always should be in Boston, but for the better part of the last five years, it’s been painfully obvious.
That’s not the case anymore.
But as the ball gets thrown into the air on Thursday night, a new Celtics season will begin with an unfamiliar feeling for fans to enjoy:
The thrill of the unknown.