The Boston Celtics won the 2024 NBA Championship. But is the team hungry enough to try and repeat as champions? Or will they fail like the last six champions before them?
The NBA has had a different champion for the past seven years. The last team to repeat as champions were the 2017 Golden State Warriors. That team had transcendent talent in Kevin Durant and Steph Curry. Can the Celtics repeat as champions?
Let’s explore the challenges the Celtics will face, as well as things working in their favor.
Top 5 Reasons Boston Celtics Repeat as Champions
Celtics Coach Joe Mazzulla
If there is one person who cannot wait to begin the title defense, it is Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla. Joe has been all over the place in the past several months. First, he appeared on the Zach Lowe Podcast, saying,
“I have been thinking about repeating since the whistle blow of the 2024 Finals.”
Then, speaking on the Locked On Celtics podcast, he said,
“People’s going to say the target’s on our back, but I hope it’s right on our forehead, in between our eyes. I hope I can see the red dot.”
It is great when you have a coach who is preparing the team mentally for what lies ahead. Joe is ready, can the rest of the team follow him?
Jayson Tatum
Jayson Tatum had one of the most unique summers in NBA history. First, he won an NBA title, then he got on the cover of NBA 2K25, and then he signed the largest contract in NBA history at $314 million.
After that though, he had to humble down a bit. While Tatum was selected to play for Team USA at the 2024 Paris Olympics, he had a rough time. Steve Kerr benched him for the opening game and didn’t play him much after that. Many experts, including Kendrick Perkins, expect Tatum to come back with a chip on his shoulder, even trying to win the regular season MVP award.
Jaylen Brown
If you thought Tatum got disrespected by Team USA, look no further than his teammate. Jaylen Brown was the driving force of the 2024 Championship run, winning the Eastern Conference Finals MVP and the Finals MVP. He was not selected among the first 12 players for Team USA. When Kawhi Leonard left the team, Steve Kerr and Grant Hill selected another Boston Celtics player, Derrick White.
It can be said that no Finals MVP has been disrespected as much as Brown. He continues to say there is nothing to prove, but internally, we can bet he wants to show people he has what it takes.
Historical Dominance
The Celtics lost only three games in the playoffs en route to the NBA championship. Their offense, scoring 122.2 points per 100 possessions, set the highest mark in NBA history. The 2023-24 Celtics finished first in offensive efficiency and second in defensive deficiency.
Continuity
We said in the beginning that no team has repeat as champions since the 2017 Golden State Warriors. Well, one reason for that is that all championship teams from the past seven years lost key rotational players.
The 2018 Warriors returned the same team, but they lost Durant and Klay Thompson to injuries in the playoffs. The team that beat them, the 2019 Toronto Raptors, lost Kawhi Leonard in free agency. The 2020 Lakers, or the bubble Lakers, lost Dwight Howard and Rajon Rondo, two veterans and key contributors to their championship run.
The 2021 Bucks had a rough time during the 2022 playoffs. They had the same core, but they lost Khris Middleton to injuries, and Giannis Antetokounmpo couldn’t carry the team on his own. The 2022 Celtics eliminated the Bucks from the playoffs in an epic seven-game series.
The 2022 Warriors won the title, but they selected to part ways with key role players like Gary Payton II and Otto Porter Jr. Add in the fact that Draymond Green and Jordan Poole got into a fight before the season, and their title defense had little to no chance.
The Denver Nuggets won the title in 2023, but in the summer, they parted ways with two key contributors, Bruce Brown and Jeff Green. They lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the second round in last season’s playoffs.
So far, the 2024 Celtics have the same core, and if they remain healthy, they have a chance to repeat.
Top 3 Reasons They Will Not Repeat as Champions
Overall, no team has been better equipped to repeat than the Boston Celtics. Previous champions lost key role players, while the Celtics kept the same team. But here are some quick reasons why they will not repeat.
- They will not steamroll through the East, the conference is much better.
- They cannot rest players. Unlike last season, this time every game will count.
- They are thin at center, with Al Horford nearing 40, and Kristaps Porzingis susceptible to injuries.
Who Can Challenge the Celtics?
Health and luck are real variables in the NBA. Two of the last six championship teams lost key players en route to their title defense. The Celtics realistically have one injury-prone player in Porzingis and one nearing 40 years old in Horford.
Yet, there is a reason why no team has repeated since the Warriors in 2018. Both the East and the West got better. We talked about if the Celtics can repeat as champions. Now let’s take a look at their challengers.
New York Knicks
Once Leon Rose became the president of basketball operations with the Knicks, he changed the team’s strategy. He began slowly building this team up. Everything started with Julius Randle and continued with Jalen Brunson, and now the team is full of two-way wings.
The Knicks have a team similar to the one of the Celtics, a well-rounded team with four 20-point scorers. New York can challenge the Celtics’s depth, and that will be key during a long season and playoffs. By trading for Mikal Bridges, they managed to reduce the load on Brunson.
Philadelphia 76ers
One can argue that the Sixers have the best trio in the league. The downside? Having a big three hasn’t worked for a while.
Philadelphia changed more than half of its roster, and chemistry might be an issue. Yet, they have three elite players in Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid, and Paul George. Out of all the teams in the East, only Philadelphia has had a player in the top-three of MVP voting in the past three years.
The challenge for Philly is health. Yes, Embid has been an MVP-type player for years, but he hasn’t had a single healthy postseason. And George is injury-prone as well. If healthy, the Sixers are a true contender.
Milwaukee Bucks
The 2024 Bucks had challenges finding chemistry between Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard. With a full training camp, perhaps they can get back to contender status. Lillard has been honest during his interviews this summer that it was challenging going to a new city, living without his family, and adapting to being the second option.
The Bucks will have a more well-rounded roster with depth after signing some role players. But Lillard and Giannis are the most important pieces to the puzzle.
Western Conference Teams
You can say that the Celtics faced a lower-tier NBA Finals team during their championship run. The Dallas Mavericks were a fifth seed in the West. None of the upper-echelon teams like the Oklahoma City Thunder, Los Angeles Clippers, or the Denver Nuggets made it to the Finals.
Yes, the Celtics played the hand they were given. But will they have the same luck again?
