Last summer, when Brad Stevens left his post as Boston Celtics head coach to become team president, he didn't leave his successor, Ime Udoka, with a roster unequipped for playoff contention. Under the stewardship of Stevens, the Celtics averaged 44 wins in eight seasons, and reached the East playoffs seven times. But three title pushes ended in the conference finals, and there were doubts about whether Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown could coexist.
Stevens and the Celtics' entrusted Udoka -- who'd spent more than a decade as an NBA assistant coach -- to lift a team with championship promise to new heights. And the 44-year-old has lived up to the pressure, as Boston is about to play in its first NBA Finals since 2010, and look to capture its first title since 2008. The homegrown tandem of Tatum and Brown has thrived with Udoka in command, and they'll all be put to the test against the Golden State Warriors.
"They have to play more poised and have to play with more passion in certain areas. They can't come out slow, let the game come to them," Celtics reporter Gary Washburn explained to The DA Show on Wednesday. "And they've got to attack the game -- especially in Game 1. They've got to come out, punch first. It's a series for the taking, but they're going to have to take it... And if not, the Warriors, with their championship mettle, are going to be the better team...
"I think they desperately needed to win that Game 7 against Miami and get to this level. Because they've been knocking on the door so long. And you can't rely on next year... If you turn around and blow this opportunity and say, 'Well, we've got next year,' well, Milwaukee's going to be back. Brooklyn is going to be back. Philadelphia... There's too many teams that are gearing for the title, when you have a chance to get to this level, you've got to take advantage."
Behind a combined 50 points from Tatum and Brown, the Celtics advanced to the NBA Finals on Sunday at FTX Arena, outlasting the Miami Heat, 100-96, in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals. Tatum, who wore a purple-and-gold wristband in honor of the late Kobe Bryant, received the inaugural series MVP award, named after Celtics legend Larry Bird. And according to ESPN, Udoka became the first rookie head coach to win multiple Game 7's.
Boston, which clinched the East's second seed with a 51-31 record, will visit the Warriors for Game 1 on Thursday, with tipoff scheduled for 9:00 ET inside Chase Center. According to FiveThirtyEight projections, the Celtics currently have an 80-percent chance to hoist the Larry O'Brien trophy, and it'd be their league-record 18th championship in history.
The entire Celtics conversation between Washburn and The DA Show can be accessed in the audio player above.
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