Boston Celtics fans don't need the reminder that things aren't what they once were, but the Red Sox gave them one, anyway. On Saturday, the Red Sox hosted several Celtics players, as well as Joe Mazzulla and a few assistants. The non-Celtics fans in attendance at Fenway probably couldn't have named the players in attendance. Actually, they definitely couldn't.
Days after winning the 2024 championship, Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Kristaps Porzingis, Derrick White, and Al Horford all took part in the ceremonial first pitch. None of those players were in attendance on Saturday (Porzingis is gone and Horford might as well be).
Life comes at you fast https://t.co/nBhsy6avFx pic.twitter.com/Wv4fqVJ243
— Dan Greenberg (@StoolGreenie) August 18, 2025
The Celtics' chances of repeating officially went down the drain when Tatum ruptured his Achilles in Game 4 of the semifinals. He'll miss most of the 2025-26 season, if not all of it, so that moment changed everything for Boston's future. You can't rule out the Celtics for next season (the East is wide open!), but they won't be nearly as dominant as they were the past two seasons. Not even close.
Celtics players at Red Sox game gives fans another brutal reminder
No disrespect to Hugo Gonzalez, RJ Luis, Luka Garza, Josh Minott, Amari Williams, or Max Shulga, but rolling out those five players is a stark difference from the players that were there last year. The vibes were higher last year, given that they had just won a championship, but still. It's not how fans thought things would be a little over a year later.
There is a silver lining here. You'd think the Celtics were the worst team in the league if you didn't know better, and that couldn't be further from the truth. It's just a "gap year." It's not like Boston's future is screwed. Tatum's recovery is going well, which is the kind of good news that the Celtics need, but there's still a dark cloud hanging around.
It's that going from the anticipation of a repeat to losing your star player for an entire season and retooling the roster to make it significantly less expensive feels like a gut punch. The Celtics went from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows in a matter of seconds after Tatum got hurt.
Boston isn't at rock bottom, although it might feel that way. Maybe not having expectations or pressure on the Celtics' shoulders will result in a fun season.