Brad Stevens expressed frustration over the Celtics' early playoff exit after high expectations for the season. He emphasized the need for introspection and improvement, particularly regarding the team's performance against top seeds.
Key points
Brad Stevens is frustrated with the Celtics' early playoff exit.
The team had high expectations after a strong regular season.
Jayson Tatum's injury affected the team's playoff performance.
Stevens is considering roster changes and has a trade exception available.
He remains confident in the coaching staff's abilities.
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BOSTON (AP) â Make no mistake about it, Brad Stevens still expected to be watching the Celtics in the playoffs right now.
âIâm pissed. Iâd rather be playing New York tonight,â Bostonâs president of basketball operations said Wednesday during his end of season news conference.
Stevensâ bitterness is not just about the second-seeded Celtics losing to Philadelphia to mark the third time in the last four years that they have lost in the playoffs as the higher seed.
Itâs more about how a team that started the season with Jayson Tatum sidelined, and with such low outside expectations, overachieved to a point that Stevens and the front office were thinking anything was possible when the postseason opened a few weeks ago.
âIf you would have told me last summer that we would have won 56 games in the regular season; that the young guys would all become contributors; that people would have great impacts, and all up and down our roster; that we would get Tatum back for (22 games) ... I would have been thrilled with those results,â Stevens said. âBut the reality is, is that we came up short and, so now the job is to do an honest assessment.â
Stevens said that introspection will begin with first taking a breath following Bostonâs earliest postseason exit since Stevensâ final season as Bostonâs coach in 2020-2021.
It got him thinking about a small sign that hangs in his office that says, âWhat do you want, whatâs true and how do you get there.â
âThereâs no question what we want. Thereâs no question when you look at whatâs true that, though we did a lot of good things, we lost in the first round," Stevens said. "And weâre also 3-11 against the top three seeds in the West (Oklahoma City, San Antonio, ) and the other top two (, New York) in the East. And so, weâve got to get better.â
Even before Tatum made his season debut on March 6, just shy of 10 months after rupturing his right Achilles tendon in the second round of the playoffs last season against New York, the Celtics were thriving with the feisty group led by All-Star .
Brown set career scoring (28.7), rebounding (6.9) and assists (5.1) averages while getting into the MVP conversation for the first time.
That continued when Tatum returned and played in 16 of the final 22 regular-season games, in which he averaged 21.8 points and 10 rebounds. He looked mostly like himself playing at what Tatum said was about 80-85% as he continued to rehab and prepared to play more minutes in the playoffs.
But it also could have contributed, Stevens acknowledged, to Tatum leaving Game 6 of their first-round series with the early with an unspecified left leg issue. By the morning of Game 7 two days later he was experiencing , and the decision was made for him to sit it out.
The Celtics lost 109-100 without him.
Stevens said everything about Tatumâs return will be looked at by their sports performance staff, including how the ramp up in his minutes may have factored into the new knee ailment.
Tatum averaged 36.3 minutes in his six playoff games, twice logging 40-plus.
âHe did play a lot of minutes,â Stevens said. âDo we think that had an impact on his knee stiffness and in the injury in Game 6? Itâs hard to tell, but we canât cross it off. So we have to look at that. And, I know that they will.â
How much change to the roster will take place is unclear. The only unrestricted free agent this summer will be , who was acquired from in exchange for at the trade deadline.
But the Celtics received about a $27.5 million trade exception in that deal that Stevens could use this offseason. He said everything is on the table.
He was coy about what they might pursue but did note that figuring out how to get to the rim more would be a priority.
âI think that one of the things that weâve got to figure out is how to have more of an impact at the rim,â Stevens said. âAnd I think we need to add to our team to do that.â
As for who will be in charge of the roster once itâs constructed, Stevens said he still has confidence in Joe Mazzulla and his staff.
âI think our coaching staff, like all of us, can continue to improve and get better. That said, I think theyâre very good, and we need to continue to provide them the resources to grow and to get better and to continue to be the best that we can be.â
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AP NBA:
Q&A
Why did the Celtics lose to the 76ers in the playoffs?
The Celtics lost to the 76ers in the first round, marking their third early exit in four years, partly due to Jayson Tatum's injury and overall performance against top teams.
What are Brad Stevens' plans for the Celtics' roster this offseason?
Brad Stevens indicated that everything is on the table for roster changes, including utilizing a $27.5 million trade exception to improve the team's ability to score at the rim.
How did Jayson Tatum's injury impact the Celtics' playoff performance?
Jayson Tatum's injury, which caused him to miss Game 7 against the 76ers, was a significant factor in the Celtics' loss, as he had averaged high minutes leading up to the injury.
What did Brad Stevens say about the Celtics' coaching staff?
Brad Stevens expressed confidence in Joe Mazzulla and the coaching staff, stating they can continue to improve and that they need resources to grow.
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