Just How Historically Good Are The 2024 Celtics?
Following another wire-to-wire beatdown, the Celtics won their 18th title in franchise history. So, just how historically good is this squad?
The best team in the league rarely wins it all. From injuries to underperformance, the “best” or most talented team rarely hoists the Larry O’Brien trophy in June. That statement cannot be said about the 2023-24 Boston Celtics. From the opening tip of the regular season, the Celtics were head and shoulders above their competition. The only team that could stop Boston was themselves. But, after years of coming up short in the playoffs, Boston’s new additions fitted in seamlessly to help push the Celtics over the top for the first time since 2008. The result? One of the most historically dominant teams in league history and an 18th banner to hang above the parquet floors.
Now, only one question remains. Just how historically good are these Celtics?
The Jaylen Brown & Jayson Tatum Success Story
Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown shouldn’t be Boston Celtics. If it wasn’t for one of the most lopsided trades in league history between Brooklyn and Boston in 2013, none of this would be possible. In return for two washed up stars, the Celtics have gotten nearly a decade of dominance. When it’s all said and done, Billy King will get a statue outside of TD Garden one day.
It’s been a long time coming for Tatum and Brown to get to this point. The duo lost a Finals together in 2022 and lost in the conference finals in 2018, 2020, and 2023. In many of those years, the Celtics were favored to win it all. Many critics wondered if this duo would ever be able to break through.
It seems foolish in hindsight, but I was one of many people who were skeptical that this duo would work out. While both players were excellent in their own right and had skills well-suited for the modern game, did they really mesh that well? Could they each carve out their own roles without stepping on each other’s toes? Would they be able to succeed in the playoffs?
After years of heartbreaks and setbacks, Tatum and Brown finally clicked. They figured it out, rewarding the patience of the front office for not hastily moving on from them. The pairing between the two forwards is by no means perfect. Tatum struggles with his shot selection, and Brown can’t use his left hand.
But, this postseason, the two figured out how to coexist together. Tatum became a better playmaker and accepted the swarming double teams sent at him. When Golden State sent double teams at him two years ago, Tatum panicked. That was not the case in this series against Dallas. Brown became more decisive with his drives and decision-making. While a lot of media drama was generated on who would win Finals MVP between the two or who was better, the two never lost focus on the goal.
Patience is a virtue. It’s not easy to find in the NBA. At the first signs of resistance, teams change course and make drastic changes. How many other front offices would have kept these two together for so long? And, perhaps more importantly, how many stars in our league are selfless enough to share the spotlight like Tatum and Brown have?
Through everything, all the two ever wanted to do was win. That’s the only thing that has mattered. It’s what made their game five victory over Dallas mean all that much more. After all the excruciating missed opportunities, two of the most successful young players in league history finally cashed in.
And that’s not hyperbole. Despite what the national perception is of these two guys, it’s hard to find a more accomplished young duo. No player under the age of 27 has scored more points in the playoffs than Jayson Tatum (2,711). Jaylen Brown is sixth all-time on that same list (1,911 points).
In his career, Jayson Tatum has won 68 career playoff games. The only players with more before turning 27 are Kobe Bryant, Tony Parker, and Magic Johnson. In the 2020s, Tatum and Brown are the only two players in the NBA with 50+ playoff wins.
And despite the ridicule he received for his poor shooting throughout these playoffs, Tatum was invaluable to the Celtics. He became the sixth player to lead his team in points, rebounds, and assists in a single postseason while winning a title. The other five players are Nikola Jokic, Lebron James, Tim Duncan, Hakeem Olajuwon, and Larry Bird. Or, you know, some of the greatest players the league has ever seen.
In an era of hot takes and negativity galore, it’s easy to take for granted how good Tatum and Brown have been together. But the Celtics didn’t, and now they have a championship to show for it.
Brad Stevens: The Real MVP
For years, the Celtics always fielded competitive rosters around their star duo. But, those rosters always fell apart in the playoffs. While Danny Ainge laid the foundation for this roster, Brad Stevens filled in the cracks to turn this team into the monster we know it to be today.
The Celtics are the nexus of two decades of NBA evolution. They combine the tenacious perimeter defense of the 2000s with the pace and space of the 2010s. It’s hard to find a better defensive backcourt than Jrue Holiday and Derrick White, who both made All-Defensive teams this season.
And it’s hard to find a more prolific 3-PT shooting team than Boston. Eight Celtics made 100+ triples this season. Boston not only attempted more 3-pointers than anybody else (42.5 3-PTA), they also made them at the second highest mark (38.8%).
Brad Stevens added the likes of Al Horford, Derrick White, Jrue Holiday, and Kristaps Porzingis to this roster. And he did so without sacrificing a king’s ransom of picks or talent to do so. This is the following list of assets it took to acquire Holiday, White, and Porzingis;
- Marcus Smart
- Malcolm Brogdon
- Robert Williams III
- Danillo Gallinari
- Mike Muscala
- Julian Phillips
- Romeo Langford
- Moses Brown (for Josh Richardson, who was apart of the White deal)
- Pick #25 in 2022 (used on Blake Wesley)
- 2028 pick swap with San Antonio
- 2029 First-Round Pick
There are some good players on that list, but none as good or as valuable as Holiday, White, and Porzingis. The result was balanced, lethal lineup that was equally dangerous on both sides of the floor. While Tatum and Brown didn’t have transcended, all-time playoff performances, they didn’t really need to for Boston to be successful.
Looking to the future a little bit, the Celtics are well set up to win in the future. While Joel Embiid opined that the new CBA rules would hurt the Celtics, I disagree. For starters, all of Boston’s key contributors are returning next season, and they’re only $2.9 million over the second apron. And while that second apron places some restrictions on the moves that Boston can make, do they have to make any?
Most of Boston’s core is on the younger side. With the exception of Al Horford (38) and Jrue Holiday (34), the majority of the roster is on the right side of 30. The second apron’s restrictions do a lot of things, but they don’t infringe on Boston’s ability to draft. Over the next eight years, the Celtics own 7 of their first-round picks.
Championships are hard to come by and are never guaranteed. There are many unknowns and variables that go into winning it all. But, the Celtics’ are positioned well to strike while the iron is hot. The possibility of winning multiple championships during this window is certainly possible, if not likely.
So, Where Do The 2024 Celtics Rank All-Time?
Not every champion is an all-time great one. It’s hard to stand the test of time both numerically and visually. I doubt many fans realized how good the Celtics were this season in a historical context. They had a notorious reputation for failing in big moments and being so up and down in their effort and performance, problems that sometimes persisted this season.
Even still, it’s hard to deny just how dominant they were. This year’s Celtics squad sported the 4th highest point differential in the regular season and playoffs….ever.
| Team | Point Differential | Per Game |
| 1970-71 Milwaukee Bucks | +1208 | +12.6 |
| 1995-96 Chicago Bulls | +1194 | +11.9 |
| 2016-17 Golden State Warriors | +1184 | +12.0 |
| 2023-24 Boston Celtics | +1083 | +10.7 |
The Celtics compiled a record of 80-21 this season, the 11th-highest winning percentage (79%) ever. They barely missed an exclusive list of 7 teams in league history to win 80 or more games while losing less than 20 in a single season. In the postseason, the Celtics lost just three times. They are the ninth team to lose three or fewer games en route to a title since 1983-84 — when the league moved to a modern playoff format.
The Celtics also set the record for the highest offensive rating ever (123.2) and had the third-highest regular season net rating ever (+11.6). Clearly, they belong somewhere in the pantheon of great teams. But I probably wouldn’t put them in the top five.
Teams like the 1996 Bulls or the 2017 Warriors had more firepower. Ditto for the 2001 Lakers, who also lost just one playoff game. The 1971 Bucks had Kareem and Oscar Robertson while sporting the highest point differential in league history. The 1986 Celtics were deeper than these Celtics and had Bird and McHale, a more potent duo than Brown and Tatum. Behind a 33-game winning streak, the 1972 Lakers, led by the late great Jerry West and Wilt Chamberlain, lost a laughable 15 games in a season.
I could spend hours finding the perfect spot, but the Celtics are probably somewhere in the 7-15 range of greatest teams. They were unbeatable during the regular season and pretty darn close in the postseason, albeit against injured opponents. Time will tell if the public perception and appreciation for this team will match its statistical dominance.
But, thanks to the shrewd moves of Brad Stevens and the maturation of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, the Boston Celtics finally reached the mountaintop and cemented themselves as one of the greatest teams ever.
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