Jaylen Brown reminded the Boston Celtics of what they lost in his preseason debut with the Philadelphia 76ers. However, despite all of that, it feels as though there's still confidence that the Celtics' vision post-Brown could work, but may only be designed to thrive in the regular season, like last year.
However, while it's possible the Celtics may not go much further than they did last year - due to the East being stronger as a whole - something we must keep in mind is that no matter how strongly you may approve of the additions of Paul George or Mitchell Robinson, the fact of the matter is, Boston brought in the players that swung their last two playoff series against them.
Not to rub it in, but remember how Boston was up by 20 in their first two playoff games against New York in the 2025 Eastern Conference Semifinals? That doesn't happen without Mitchell Robinson. His offensive rebounding and rim protection was killer against the Celtics. He basically tossed around Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford like rag dolls.
The Knicks had no business winning either of those games, but Robinson kept them in it. And guess what? George did something similar in the Celtics' most recent playoff series.
George was simultaneously hitting huge shots in the Celtics' face while making life miserable for the Jays on the other end of the floor. Not many players can actually say that they could do that, let alone hit big three after big three, but George can.
The point is, Boston brought in two players who have proven in the past two years that they are absolute game-changers in the postseason, as evidenced by what they did exactly to them. Make no mistake, they were the biggest factor in how the Celtics were sent home earlier than expected, and now they are Celtics.
Kind of a scary thought, no?
What that means for the Celtics
Is all of this to say that Boston is the team to beat in the East? Of course not. Again, the Eastern Conference, for once, is going to be a tough road for anyone who wants to go all the way. The Celtics will definitely have their work cut out for them if the plan is to win as much as possible.
However, players like George and Robinson, even if they're not All-Stars, are the kind of players that playoff teams want. Players that give their team an indisputable edge from what they bring to the table by themselves are insanely valuable. Robinson brings rebounding, George brings shooting and shot creation, while both bring disruptive defense.
It's not going to just be about how they fit well in Mazzulla Ball, but the kind of difference they make on the basketball court when the going gets tough. Boston's definitely not the favorite, but if all goes right, they definitely are going to be the team no one in the conference will want to face.
Add us as a preferred source on Google