Experience: the Boston Celtics’ trump card

There was a time once I questioned the notion that vital playoff expertise was essential to win an NBA title.

This take might or might not have coincided with rookie Jayson Tatum and second-year Jaylen Brown main the Boston Celtics to Sport 7 of the Jap Convention Finals in opposition to Lebron James’ Cleveland Cavaliers, and me attempting to persuade myself that have was overrated. Why couldn’t 19-year-old Jayson Tatum out-duel one of many biggest gamers within the league’s historical past in a Sport 7?

Six years, one other journey to the ECF, and a Finals loss later, this present period of Boston Celtics basketball is one other reminder that to win the NBA title, vital playoff expertise is a prerequisite.

The 2024-2025 Boston Celtics have essentially the most gifted roster within the NBA. They’re additionally essentially the most skilled group within the NBA. I compiled the playoff expertise of the projected top-7 rotation gamers for every of the league’s contenders. Admittedly, I used to be fairly quick and free with the phrase “contender.” For instance, the Lakers are on this record. Nevertheless, I wished to incorporate any groups that, even when you squint or shut your eyes fully, you possibly can see successful the NBA title, in order that we now have a extra exhaustive record to think about:

Right here’s a breakdown of the Celtics top-7 rotation gamers’ profession playoff video games:

If you need the breakdown of what number of playoff video games every participant inside every group’s rotation has performed, the info might be discovered right here.

The Celtics didn’t squeak out the primary spot on the playoff expertise rating. They’re far and away essentially the most skilled playoff group within the league by 129 video games. That’s nearly the totality of Jaylen Brown’s whole postseason profession with Jayson Tatum checking in at 114. Al Horford and, to a lesser extent, Jrue Vacation are performing some heavy lifting for the Celtics playoff expertise, as veteran leaders usually do.

League stalwarts are carrying the subsequent two groups: LeBron James, Steph Curry, and Draymond Inexperienced. These are iconic gamers. Sadly for them, they’re doubtless not impacting the result of the 2024-2025 NBA championship.

If we simply have a look at the Jays’ playoff WINS, Jaylen has 74, and Tatum has 68. Eight NBA franchises have but to surpass 66 playoff wins of their whole existence. The 2 Celtic superstars have amassed an absurd playoff resume within the first halves of their careers.

Because it pertains to the veteran expertise and management of Horford and Vacation. Brad Stevens believes that the experience and selflessness of these two gamers could be the Celtics’ most vital benefit. Stevens not often exhibits a lot emotion; one among his favorite phrases is “don’t get too excessive and don’t get too low”, however he lit up when discussing this group’s elderstatesmen.

“For those who really need to speak about the perfect vet management within the league, there’s no means anyone’s received us beat there. Nevertheless many groups are good and every part, there’s nobody that’s received us beat in veteran management.”

Within the lead-up to the NBA Finals, there was concern from the nationwide media that the Celtics had not been “battle-tested” earlier than their matchup with the Dallas Mavericks. Nevertheless, this Celtics group had already been by their battles all of the years prior — arguably too many battles when you ask some Celtics followers (me). The excruciating Sport 7 loss to the Miami Warmth within the 2023 Jap Convention Finals. The agonizing Finals defeat to the Golden State Warriors after going up 2-1 within the sequence and being up 94-90 in Sport 4 with 4:56 left. The irritating Jap Convention drubbing to the Miami Warmth within the bubble. Not less than the ache of the Sport 7 defeat to the Cleveland Cavaliers within the 2017-2018 Jap Convention Finals was considerably alleviated by exceeding expectations. Apologies if any readers at the moment are experiencing some type of PTSD.

No group within the historical past of the NBA performed extra seven-game sequence in a two-postseason span than the Boston Celtics throughout the 2022 and 2023 playoffs. Fortunately, these brutal experiences can now be considered as stepping stones on the way in which to one of the dominant NBA seasons in basketball historical past.

Playoff expertise and roster continuity are important components when chasing the aim of successful an NBA championship. It’s uncommon for a group to win a title with out accumulating a number of playoff scars first. That is true of a few of the biggest groups in NBA historical past: the Heatles misplaced to the Dallas Mavericks in 2011. The Warmth would go on to win back-to-back championships after that. Kobe and Shaq misplaced within the second spherical or convention finals of the playoffs three years in a row earlier than rattling off a three-peat. Did I select two examples that concerned each groups successful back-to-back championships after accruing their playoff scars? After all. Nevertheless, this iteration of the Boston Celtics shares a number of issues in frequent with these groups – essentially the most expertise, continuity and a wealth of expertise.

There’s little or no that this Celtics group has not been by, regardless of their two greatest gamers being within the early levels of their primes. Their mixed expertise, together with their abundance of expertise, might be a weapon that no different group within the league can depend on in the identical means.