Larry Bird first got this far at 24. As much as it took him a few more NBA seasons to do so, Jayson Tatum has now reached the NBA Finals for the first time at the age of 24, as well. The Celtics can't afford to get complacent right now, but Sunday's win is a major step for the franchise's future with this core.
"It'll be all for naught if we go lay an egg in the finals, and we understand that," Ime Udoka said. "Guys were quick to celebrate but quick to flip the page and say, 'We got four more.' We don't hang or celebrate Eastern Conference Championships in the Celtics organizations, so we all fall in line and appreciate that standard of excellence.
"We're here now; try to finish the deal."
Udoka's all-or-nothing view is exactly how this team should handle their situation. But Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Marcus Smart and Robert Williams getting this experience under their belts is vital for Boston's future. Because now they finally have an understanding of how to get to this far.
No matter the regular season success or statement postseason wins, there's nothing that can replicate getting to this point in the postseason. And now, the Celtics have three players under the age of 26 who will get the chance to duke it out with the latest NBA dynasty. Even at the age of 28, Smart is experiencing something Paul Pierce didn't get to until he was 30 years old. Kevin Garnett didn't even get to the promised land until 32.
"Losing my first year and losing to (the Heat) in the bubble, I think going through those times helped us grow, helped us learn," Tatum said. "Once we get in that situation again, we respond differently. I think that's what it was today. We would get a big lead, and they're a great team, well-coached, and they would come back. But we kept responding, and we kept the lead and kept making winning basketball plays. Everybody. It was big, it really was.
"In the moment when you lose those series, obviously, it hurts, and it's tough. But you never forget it. I think that's what we all have in common, that we all (have) been through those tough times, and we remember how that felt. We didn't want to have that feeling again leaving here tonight."
And if the Celtics learn from this experience like they did from their losses in the past, the future is bright. But for now, their focus is on Thursday's Game 1, which is going to be a tough task. Winning is all that matters in the short term, but no matter what happens in the 2022 NBA Finals, this is a major step for Tatum, Brown and the rest of Boston's core.
