Much Needed Salute: Boston’s Year of Progression

Well, the season that seemed all but wrapped up in the month of January ended on the TD Garden floor in Game six of the NBA Finals.

Since the middle of January, this Boston team was on a mission like no other. On its road to the NBA Finals, the Celtics beat a star-studded Brooklyn Nets team that many doubted they would get past, and the defending champions and an Erik Spoelstra-led squad.

Despite the fact that this team came up short in the end, it was one that has to go down in Boston sports lore as one of the teams with the biggest heart. The team ultimately ran out of gas playing in back-to-back seven-game series, but this past season carved the path of the future of the greatest franchise in the history of sports.

Getting through the Eastern Conference has always been something that has plagued this Celtic team for a long time after the "Big Three" era.

From the 11th seed in the Eastern Conference to the second seed when it came to April, this Boston team put together what should go down as the greatest second-half turnaround in the history of the NBA.

The Celtics were a longshot to even make it to the NBA playoffs in January, never mind making it through the daunting Eastern Conference. This team showed the world what was possible if a group of players stuck together not only through the good times, but the days when some felt like quitting.

The future of the Celtics is clear after it finally reached the NBA Finals. Ime Udoka and Boston are geared up for yet another deep run next season with a championship roster intact, but this time, they have some unfinished business.

C/O: AP Photo/Winslow Townson

Following the loss, Udoka spoke on the message he gave the team, stating, "So, the message was (that) we thanked them for the effort, and the growth and everything they allowed us to do coaching-wise this year. And the biggest message was learn from this, grow from it, take this experience and see there is another level to get to, with a team like Golden State, who has been there, done that, and it was evident in a lot of ways. And don't come back the same; as players, or a coaching staff, and let this fuel you throughout the offseason into next year...this is just the start; The foundation's been set. We can hit the ground running next year. Let's get healthy and (let's) all be on the same page."

In the final game of the season, the thing that has been the Achilles heel during this entire postseason run proved to be too much to overcome. Twenty-three giveaways in a contest that was going to decide the fate of the season is simply not going to be good enough to get the job done.

Heading into the offseason, the team needs first of all to get healthy, especially Robert Williams III who no doubt was playing the entire playoff run hurt. The fully healthy Boston Celtics in February and March was one of the most elite defensive teams that had the ability to score the ball in a plethora of different ways.

The Oklahoma City Thunder and the San Antonio Spurs had a better record than the Celtics in the month of December when the team and season looked like it was falling apart. Critics around the league were calling for Jason Tatum and Jaylen Brown to be split up, on top of stating that Marcus Smart was not the point guard of the future.

From signing Dennis Schröder before the season started, to shooting nine-and-a-half percent from beyond the arc against the Clippers, to trading for Derrick White, this team has been through it all. Despite the sour ending in the Finals, it was a year full of steps in the right direction. Tatum became more of a playmaker and has found ways to impact the game without scoring the basketball at times. Grant Williams became one of the most consistent long-range shooters on the team along with Smart finally receiving his flowers as the best defender in the NBA.

This team embodied the toughness and the grit that the city of Boston takes pride in. Tatum went from not even making the All-NBA team last year to being selected to the first team over some of the players that he idealized when he was younger. Certainly, there will be questions about what the team could add in the offseason. From another wing off the bench to a young big guy that would be able to grow alongside Al Horford.

At this point in the mission, the acquisitions are small, and when it comes down to it, the team that has been put together by Brad Stevens simply has to execute at the level that each of them knows they can.

Following the Finals loss, Horford spoke on the season as a whole, and what the future holds, stating, "Obviously very tough to lose and be in this position. I’m very proud of our group. I’m very proud of the growth of our group all year. We went from a below .500 team, average team, to putting it together. I don’t want to get caught up in necessarily some of the bad stuff that happened tonight. I want us to keep perspective on how much growth, to your question, Jayson and Jaylen had this year. There’s a lot on their hands, a lot of responsibility. They took it in stride. They made adjustments. They improved. They grew as players. But as you can see, there’s still a lot of growth and a lot of work for all of us. The Warriors definitely were on a different level. It’s something that we have to accept, and we all have to grow."

Two players that some viewed to be on the brink of stardom rose to a whole different level in the second half of the season. Tatum and Brown still have more room to improve from taking care of the basketball to knowing when it is time for either of them to go get a basket themselves. With 14 players under contract next season and the only free agent on the team is Luke Kornet, there is no question this team has the talent to get back in the same position next season. The team has the Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception along with a whopping nine trade exceptions ranging from $17 million to $500,000. There is room for General Manager Brad Stevens to improve the team in positions he feels necessary, but in reality, the continued evolution across the roster will bring this team to a whole different level.

A rollercoaster of a season ended at the hands of one of the most experienced teams the NBA currently has to offer. Simply throwing this past series aside and forgetting about it is not the purpose of getting there in the end.

Learning from defeat, and knowing that these big moments are there for the taking has to be the goal. It was without a doubt one of the most successful seasons of Celtics basketball since 2010, and the head coach has only been in the building for one year. This team demonstrated that it is possible and that with limited mistakes in the moments that matter the most, another banner could have been raised. A season that was almost a catastrophe ended in something the entire organization and fanbase should be proud of.

C/O: Getty Images

Each player knows that this season is a massive stepping stone, but that does not make it any easier to watch the opposition celebrating on their home floor yet another title. From a mediocre middle of the standings Eastern Conference team to a bonafide contender at the top of the Conference, this Boston team brought a lot of joy to a city that is always hungry for success.

As many of the players stated postgame, this is going to fuel them for the future. As Winton Churchill once said, "it is the end of the beginning." It is now time for the real work to begin, and show the rest of the world that this season was anything but a fluke.