Carving Their Own Path

One-and-a-half seconds left on the clock, at Madison Square Garden, Jan. 8, 2022. RJ Barrett hoisted a desperation three to give the Knicks a remarkable victory, putting them in a tie for the 10th seed with the Boston Celtics. If someone had said the Celtics would be the Eastern Conference champions after witnessing the disaster that put Boston two games under .500, that person would have been laughed out of the room. Well, look what a few months can do.

Playing two future hall of famers in the first round looked like a death sentence for Boston, but in reality, the Celtics continued to show the world they are up for any challenge. Boston did not shy away from the competition, it ran full speed ahead at it all season. A story that is defined by toughness, perseverance, and never quitting. If the Celtics do prevail to win Banner 18, they will begin a new era in the NBA, leading the way for younger stars to find even more success than maybe some people might have thought.

Nobody would have blamed them if the team folded in the middle of the season when it reached the 11th seed. A sensational team built behind one of the most versatile defenses the league has ever seen. Improvement from within, staying the course, and continuing to fight even though some things did not go their way--that is what the 2021-22 Boston Celtics are all about. Losing a Game six at home with the chance to reach the NBA Finals looked like a blown opportunity. The character and mental toughness to be able to take that trip to Miami and steal Game seven will go down in Celtics lore forever. For the first time since 2010, the most storied franchise in all of sports is returning to the place it has always belonged.

C/O: Reuters

After one of the biggest wins in the franchise's history, head coach Ime Udoka revealed the significance of the win, stating, "It would be all for naught if we go lay an egg in the finals, and we understand that...Guys were quick to celebrate but quick to flip the page and say, we’ve got four more, we don’t hang or celebrate Eastern Conference championships in the Celtic organization. So we all fall in line and appreciate that standard of excellence...Playing for championships, we’re here now, just got to finish the deal...We played Golden State pretty well this year. Obviously, we beat them pretty bad late in the season where we were kind of rolling early in the season."

Winning Game six at home in front of their home fans would have been the easy thing to do for the Celtics. This team puts themselves through some of the roughest terrain there is, but at the end of the tunnel, they came out ready to fight another battle. Jaylen Brown was a different human being in Game seven as his attack-minded attitude was one of the key reasons why Boston was able to outlast a stellar performance by Jimmy Butler. The Heat continued to make a run in each quarter of the deciding contest, but the Celtics always had an answer for what Miami was throwing at them. Transition buckets, to clutch threes to Max Strus, nothing was able to falter what Boston was there to do in enemy territory. Despite letting the Heat back into the game late, the Celtics were still able to hang on, something they have struggled to do in past seasons.

If Brown is that aggressive in the finals, the Warriors are going to have a tough time playing half-court defense effectively. Realistically, Boston has seven guys on its roster that can give the opposition 20 or more minutes on any given night. Golden State has remarkable individual defenders, but it has not seen an offensive attack quite as potent as the Celtics possess this season. The Warriors have elite wings, and while their offense is one of the best there is, their defense has not been tested on a whole team level since the regular season. No Ja Morant and two teams that are predicated on a single player has been the road for Golden State.

Udoka shrinking his rotation when necessary was key in helping Boston handle some of the stretches late in the game. Derrick White once again continues to prove why he was one of the best midseason pickups in NBA history. White's impact on both ends of the floor was exactly what Boston needed out of one of its top bench players. Elite role players have been a massive issue for the Celtics for quite some time, but with White and Williams coming off the bench when the starters are healthy, this squad is difficult to beat. The drive and kick abilities of Brown and Tatum are some of the most lethal talents in today's game. With not just one, but two elite wings that can play both ends of the floor is going to be a problem for the Warriors in the finals. Having a relatively simple run into the finals does not bode well for this Golden State team while the Celtics have been through the ringer more than once to get in the position they are currently in.

There is a reason why the Celtics do not hang Conference Finals banners, and Udoka possesses the exact mentality of what this franchise is all about. From a Game five collapse against the Milwaukee Bucks to missing the chance to close the series out on their home floor against the Heat. There have been a multitude of speed bumps along the way but at the end of the rainbow, the team that wears its toughness on its sleeves always comes out on top. Some said the core of Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown, and Jayson Tatum would not work like former Celtic Kendrick Perkins who said, "It's Time To Break Tatum And Brown Up" just a few short months ago. That statement aged quickly as the abilities of each and every one of the players on Boston's roster evolved their skills and took it to the next level this past season.

Grant Williams elevated his shooting, Tatum has become a sensational playmaker and creator, and Robert Williams III has grown into an intelligent defender in the halfcourt. Stars have turned into superstars, and one-way players have become reliable on both ends of the floor. Instead of trying to find talent outside of its system as many critics suggested, the Celtics kept harvesting the talent that it had in their possession. Almost three years ago, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant decided to leave their respective teams and join forces with the Brooklyn Nets. Now, the dynamic duo has to watch both of their former teams play in the NBA Finals as the world realizes that the era of the super team has slowly come to a close.

C/O: Jim Rassol/USA Today Sports

The revenge tour that started all the way back in the first round of this year's playoff run is now complete. Boston has wiped out all of the opponents that have defeated it over the past few seasons. From the bubble loss in the Conference Finals to the first-round exit to the Brooklyn Nets last season, the Celtics go full circle and take out the teams that did it to them year after year. An interesting, yet intriguing series awaits in a battle to be crowned the champions of the world. Twelve long years of trying to put the puzzle together, and finally all the pieces fit in order to conquer what was a gauntlet of an Eastern Conference this past season.

The mountain has always looked so difficult to climb for this Boston team, but with Brad Stevens moving up to the front office, and the presence of Udoka at the helm, this core that has been doubted time and time again has broken through the ceiling. No matter what happens in the NBA Finals, the Celtics can hang their hats on what they were able to do this season. Defying the odds, beating the demons of the past, and returning to a place that has this franchise written all over it. That is what this season's Boston Celtics were able to do.