Anything Less Than A Championship For The Celtics Is A Failure

By STEVE ATKINSON

The Celtics are loaded. There is no excuse for them not to win a championship this season. They have more talent than they did a year ago with all about himself Marcus Smart on the team. The Celtics are a better team without Smart. Derrick White and Jrue Holiday are two dynamic players who know their roles and won’t try to take the spotlight away from Tatum and Brown like Smart tried to do. Even Porzingis is pretty good and we saw that the other night against the Knicks. He had four blocks and was the reason they won their first game of the season. 

The Celtics Should Win The Whole Thing

The Heat game was the Derrick White show in the fourth quarter. It’s good that different players can take over games without it being Brown and Tatum all the time. You don’t want them gassed for the playoffs when the real test begins. Tatum and Brown were expected to do a lot with Smart here because Smart wasn’t the player that Derrick White and Holiday brought. The Celtics look more complete with this team for the first time in a long time maybe since the 2008 team. Which is why they should with the whole thing this year. 

The Celtics held a meeting last week and they don’t care who starts as long as they win. 

“Us six went together and talked about it,” Holiday said. “And honestly, it’s about what we can do for the team. No matter who starts, no matter who finishes, we all want to win. We’re all on the same page. So when it comes down to it, winning is our only option and the only thing we want to do.”

Joe Mazzulla talked about Al Horford’s impact who is looking to win a championship.

“Al’s a cultural warrior for us,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said. “So for a guy of his stature, what he’s done in this league, what he’s done for our team, to be willing to do that for our team is very important and I’m grateful for that and for him. At the same time, it’s not just about him. I think that’s the idea of this whole offseason. This preseason starting thing is like, yeah, Al’s making the initial sacrifice, but everyone’s gonna have to.”

Brad Stevens is the only GM in Boston who did what was best for the team to win a title. The Bruins let their mean coach Bruce Cassidy walk while keeping Jake DeBrusk who is late for meetings. The Patriots don’t spend on a legit number-one receiver, and the Red Sox just fired their GM who only cared about building a Triple-A Team. Brad Stevens deserves a ton of credit for doing what he did to win now. Tatum and Brown need a title under their belt so the speculation goes away if they can win when it matters the most. This year is a big test and would be a massive failure if they don’t succeed.