Can anyone or anything stop the 2024-25 Celtics?
Well, it looks like the Celtics drank plenty of water because there is no sign of a championship hangover.
In a record-tying 132-109 obliteration of the New York Knicks on opening night, Boston proved once again that they are a historically special force to be reckoned with.
"They're insane. They are a wagon," Rich Keefe said Wednesday on WEEI's Jones and Keefe.
While the team should probably wait a little longer to order that 19th banner – it is only the first game of the season – how likely is it that Adam Silver will be handing out rings in TD Garden at this time next year?
"If the Celtics shoot anywhere close to that, they're unbeatable. Like, there's just nothing you can do to stop them," Keefe said.
Boston shot close to a ludicrous 60% from beyond the arc before they cooled off after tying the record for most three-pointers in a game. They did all that Tuesday night while not having arguably their third-best player, Kristaps Porzingis. When the Latvian center makes his return, likely by mid-season, how much better will Boston look?
"They might get him back, they might not, who cares. But if they do, they become kind of unfair," Keefe said.
The last team to repeat as champions was the Golden State Warriors in 2018 when they had the MVP-caliber tandem of Steph Curry and Kevin Durant.
"You don't have two top-five players, but I have the same kind of feeling where they're going to win every series. That's how I felt about Golden State for those two years," Keefe said.
"You're like, it's kind of unfair, but whatever, they rigged the system, they did it, tip your hat to him, but they have to win it. And I feel like the Celtics are the same way," Keefe said.
So what could stop Boston from becoming a repeat champion if they continue to play at an unbeatable level on the court? Adam Jones thinks it's only off-the-court woes that could stop the Celtics.
"The answer is, they become complacent or they're not as hungry or it's just hard to defend a championship title in the NBA. Most teams, at least in the recent NBA, most teams don't defend," Jones said.
To Jones, there's no team that's coming close to challenging the Celtics' position atop the NBA power rankings.
"It's not another team where you point at them and go, that's the team," he said.
The idea of a revenge tour for Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown was almost becoming overly talked about. But Tatum's 37-point performance, fueled by eight threes, may have confirmed that idea.
"I don't know that this is an F-U tour and a message directly to Steve Kerr. Last night felt that way. Is Tatum going to do that all year? I don't know yet, but that's a different Tatum than we saw in the playoffs," Jones said.
If Tatum plays at that MVP level for the rest of the year, their championship chances will get even better.
"I want that Tatum. I want that Tatum all year long. And if they get that, they're definitely not getting beat," Jones said.
