After A Summer From Hell, Celtics Basketball Has Finally Returned To Our Lives And There Are Plenty Of Reasons To Be Excited

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We made it. It's been 80 days since we last saw the Boston Celtics play any sort of basketball (but who's counting), and finally, the wait is over. While tonight is still technically a fake game, try asking if I give a shit. We're back, and to me, that's all that matters. 

Given that this was the offseason from hell, I for one, am glad we can finally have some actual games to talk about. I can't lie, watching the other preseason games so far around the league and seeing all the former Celts with their new teams, it stung. That's a pain that will probably take a few months to get over, but at least now we can all collectively shift our attention to our own group and focus on what is surely about to be a wild season.

Tonight begins a journey that we really haven't had in about 10 years. Not since 2014-15 (pre-Isaiah trade) have the Celts entered the season without expectations to make a deep playoff run. In fact, since that season (40 wins), outside of the shortened Covid year, the Celts have never won fewer than 48 games. They won 50+ a total of 6 times. They won 60+ twice. Multiple ECF and Finals runs. A championship. It's been a decade of contention for the NBA's crown jewel franchise.

The 2025-26 Celtics season represents a reset. We all know what happened over the last handful of months, we don't need to rehash that pain. And while I've come across some people who don't seem too excited for this season, I could not disagree more. In fact, I would argue I'm more excited than ever. It's a different level than what we experienced these last two years as one of the greatest basketball teams ever constructed (fact, not opinion), but to me, there's something exciting about the unknown. The grind back to contention excites me. This is one of the rare occurrences where any outcome is beneficial for this team. If they overachieve? That means the young unproven guys are hits. If they stink? Brad Stevens is armed with the highest pick he's ever had as GM as he goes out this summer and builds out the roster. 

It may sound like a cop out, but the second Jayson Tatum went down, the Celts morphed into this weird win/win situation when it came to their season. There truly is no bad outcome.

Given how stressful every single dribble has been for the last 10 years, in some ways that's refreshing. I think we'd all prefer to be entering the season like we were in 2023-24, but that's not how life works. Even in their current situation, there are plenty of reasons to be excited. Heading into tonight's preseason debut, this is what I can't wait to see

Their new pace of play

Every chance any member of the 2025-26 Celtics stepped in front of a mic, the first thing they said was how fast this team is going to play. That might not sound like anything to the casual observer, but real ones know playing fast is simply not something we as fans have ever seen during the entire Jay's Era. They literally have never played that way 

So you bet your ass I cannot wait to see what this new approach looks like. You're telling me we're about to see everyone guard 94 feet and up the ball pressure? You're telling me we may be living in a world where offensive sets don't begin with 10 seconds on the shot clock after walking the ball up and standing around? OK, I'm intrigued. 

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With so much emphasis on playing fast, this is how I expect every opposing team to react when facing this version of the Celts

Give me chaos, give me transition, give me high energy and effort plays. That's going to be the foundation this year given what the roster looks like, and tonight is our first look.

Expanded roles for the young guys

Given how expensive the Celts roster still is even after all the money they unloaded this summer to get under the 2nd apron, it's pretty much non-negotiable that for the next iteration of the Celts roster to work, we're going to need a few of the young and unproven players to turn out to be hits. In previous seasons when you're contending for titles, developmental minutes were not really available on this roster. It's how you find yourself in an Aaron Nesmith situation for example.

But now? Developmental minutes now become one of the most important storylines of the entire season. The group of Walsh/Baylor/Hugo/Amari/Minott etc are all going to have legit opportunities to show they are worth holding on to for the next iteration of the roster.

For a guy like Walsh, this is pretty much a make of break season. Baylor showed flashes at times last season in spot minutes, well how does that translate to a more expanded role? Can he hold up defensively? Is the shooting real? 

After watching him in Vegas, I don't know how anyone couldn't be excited about Hugo. The intensity he plays with, the way he seems to dominate the margins, these are all important pieces of a championship puzzle, and I cannot wait to see how he looks against better competition. If he turns out to be playable? That is pretty massive.

To me there's something exciting about a sink or swim type of season. It's been so long since we've been able to have a prospect play consistent development minutes, we can finally see if Brad's picks can play. That's fun.

Anfernee Simons' Celtics career

One of the bigger wild cards of the season in my opinion. I do think some will be surprised with just how good Simons is. He's not a perfect player by any stretch, but he's definitely not as bad as some have made him out to be since the trade. Defensively, yeah that's straight up dogshit, but that's what I can't wait to see.

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Can Joe save him on that end? He's already talking about how much of a focus defense has been with the coaching staff, so I want to see if that's bullshit or if it translates. Remember when Derrick White came over and couldn't really shoot for shit? The Celts helped develop his shot and now look. Why can't that also be true for Simons' defensively?

If he can turn into a player who is no longer the worst defensive guard in the NBA, I think that matters when talking about his future. Given his skillset and age, if you could re-sign him at a good number, I think there's a fit. If it turns out he's not a fit? OK! Flip him in February.

But I'm excited to see his shot creation for a roster that desperately needs it, and I definitely cannot wait to see if all this talk about his defense actually translates, even in these fake games. 

Neemias Queta's Leap

If you paid attention to EuroBasket, you know Neemias Queta was dominant for Portugal. Now with a consistent opportunity, all signs point to a breakout year for Neemy. To me, I put that as

"Can you replicate Luke Kornet's season/production?"

I want to see if Queta can finally defend without fouling. I want to see Queta as a high post passer. I want to see if Queta's new 3pt shot is actually something that could one day be a weapon. He's another guy that given his age and skillset, has a real opportunity to stick around as a key rotation big in the future. We've seen the flashes, but now we need to see the consistency. Has his processing speed gotten any better? Will he look better with more consistent minutes and not having to worry about making a mistake?

The return of the championship core

I don't care when it happens, watching Jaylen Brown, Derrick White, Payton Pritchard, and Sam Hauser play basketball fucking rules. All have new, expanded roles. All are going to have to take individual leaps at certain aspects of their games given the talent that has left the roster, and I find that very exciting.

Is there another playmaking leap from Jaylen after we just witnessed the best playmaking season of his career last year? How can Derrick evolve as a shot creator and not just an off ball  player? What leap does Payton make as a starter? Will Hauser expand on his ability to put the ball on the floor and attack closeouts?

Joe's brain

Ever since Joe Mazzulla took over this team, he's had nothing but pressure. Pressure to win the title right away. Pressure to live up to expectations of what it means to coach the Boston Celtics. 

As we've seen, he's handled all of that better than anyone could possibly imagine.

But now? There's a new challenge. How is he going to shift things to fit his current roster? Aside from playing fast, what does that look like? How does this team score? How do they defend? What lineups are we about to see given all the inexperience? While these aren't exactly championship level expectations, they are still very, very important. It's a different type of challenge, and one I can't wait to see how Joe navigates.

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I could keep going, but you get the point.

Tonight marks the start of the 2025-26 journey. It's not always going to be pretty, and that's OK. You have to remember what this season is truly about, which is to see what they have. Don't even let your brain think about a potential Tatum return. Not yet. Instead, focus on the vibes, focus on the development of the young players, and focus on the leaps of the veterans. Where they finish is where they finish. For this season, that's not really the point.

It also just feels great to have the Celts back in our lives again on a nightly basis. For the next 8 months, we basically get to watch them every other night from here on out, and that my friends, is what it's all about. 

Just get me to 8pm already.