The Celtics had their final practice before opening night on Monday afternoon at the Auerbach Center.
Here is everything you need to know from Monday’s practice session as the Celtics officially wrapped up training camp 2023.
Ready for the regular season
The Celtics are ready for the regular season. Boston treated the near-three week training camp very seriously and will now look to translate that to the regular season.
“We’ve been working hard all preseason. Probably one of the best preseasons I’ve been a part of,” Jaylen Brown said Monday. “Now it’s time to perform.”
Joe Mazzulla preached the importance of having the correct mindset frequently throughout training camp, wanting his team to play tough, physical, and with intensity. When it comes to installing those philosophies, the second-year bench boss is satisfied with what he saw in camp.
“[We’re] ready to play,” Mazzulla said. “Training camp is a process. We’ve gotten everything out of our guys that we needed to from a training camp perspective.”
Naturally, there will be flaws in execution in the first few games of the season, which is an aspect beyond the control of the team. However, the team can control their mindset and approach. The Celtics did a nice job with that in training camp and will look to build off that in the first few games of the season.
Managing expectations
After a wild offseason that welcomed Kristaps Porzinigs and Jrue Holiday into the fold, the expectations for the Celtics are sky-high. The C’s are currently the betting favorites to win the NBA Finals and are on the radar of many teams around the NBA.
It’s championship or bust for the Celtics this season - Brad Stevens and the ownership have gone all in, leaving the team no excuses if they come up short.
Managing expectations isn’t necessarily an easy task, but it’s one the Celtics aren’t shying away from.
“You definitely embrace them [expectations],” Mazzulla said. “I mean, you can't ignore them. If you ignore them, you're lying to yourself.
Boston has plenty of reason to be motivated entering this season. The Celtics have been knocking on the door of a championship for the past several years but haven’t been able to get the job done. Now, they have what might be their best opportunity yet.
“I wouldn’t be lying if I said I wasn’t motivated,” Brown said. “I’m extremely motivated. I’m the type of guy to always find a chip on his shoulder to come out and compete. Not being able to get to the ultimate goal so far in my career is something that gives you extra motivation.”
Mazzulla is not worrying about the results
One of the biggest takeaways in camp has been how comfortable Mazzulla has looked. The 35-year-old was thrown into the fire a season ago but has now had a full off season to prepare, install his philosophies, and build his own staff.
Mazzulla has shown tremendous growth early in year two and acknowledged another area he believes he has grown in on Monday. The idea of surrendering to the process and coaching without worrying about the result.
When discussing the idea of embracing the expectations of his team, Mazzulla said, “I think that's another area of growth for me as a coach from year one to year two is this idea of surrender. You have to get rid of the fact that this is the situation that you're in. You've got to swing for the fences, do the absolute best that you can go balls to the wall, and surrender the result of what may happen.
"And so there was a process for me internally of, 'Hey, I have this opportunity to coach one of the greatest organizations, my hometown organization. At the end of the day, I can't really control what's going to happen to me other than what I can do every single day. There was even some of that this offseason, this idea of surrendering to that whatever may happen and just say, f— it, we're gonna just go for this thing.'
Rondo back in the building
2008 champ Rajon Rondo was back at Auerbach Center on Monday.
Celtics alumni have been present at practice frequently throughout camp, which has been a special feeling for the current team.
"When you walk into this gym, you feel the history, you want to work. You see guys like Rondo here, you want to just work,” Dalano Banton said.
“It’s so cool having these guys come around and be a part of practice, be a part of the organization,” Brown said. “Growing up watching the Celtics, see seeing KG, Rondo, Pierce, now having in our practice, in our film room… That's a tremendous honor.”
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