Celtics can't be underestimated going into season
Jay Croucher envisions the Celtics becoming a "wins machine" in 2026, sharing why he expects a lot out of Boston this year under Joe Mazzulla ahead of their opening night matchup with the Pistons on NBC and Peacock.
Video Transcript
Jay, opening night has been announced in the NBA right here on NBC and Peacock.
The first game in the slate is the Boston Celtics taking on the Detroit Pistons in Detroit.
Turns out we still don't know where Jalen Duren is going to sign, so that's interesting.
Are you surprised that this line favors Detroit, and that it is what it is in terms of the total?
Yeah, I think Duren is gonna be on the Pistons.
I don't really see what his alternative is.
No one else has cap space at this point, and so I- the worst possible outcome I think would be him signing the qualifying offer.
Regardless, I think he's gonna be, on Detroit, and I think that this line accounts for that.
I think people are going to be surprised this year by how good the Celtics are again.
I think that having lost Jaylen Brown, having not made huge splashy additions in free agency, I think they're gonna be a trendy pick for people, the Celtics missing the playoffs, and I just don't think that's gonna happen if Jayson Tatum, is able to be healthy and play 65-plus games.
I think that this team is just gonna be a wins machine.
This Mazzulla ball has shown, how dominant it is in the playoffs-- sorry, in the regular season, where even last year they win 56 games without Jayson Tatum for the vast majority of the season.
They underperformed their underlying stats.
They were more like a 59-win team by point differential, and I still think this team is just loaded with talent and loaded with talent in a way that fits and fits the way that Mazzulla wants to play, where they're gonna win the possession game.
They don't turn the ball over.
They're gonna dominate the offensive glass, which Mitchell Robinson coming across really helps with.
They have a ton of shooting, and also as maligned as he is, Paul George is still a, a pretty good player when he is out there and healthy.
Now, his issue is more, availability, but hoping that he'll be okay for night one, of the season.
And so when you look at what is gonna be the closing five, like White, Pritchard, George, Tatum, and then Cater or Mitchell Robinson, I think that is an awesome closing five, and they have the depth with shooting and defense around those guys that I think this is gonna be a really good team again.
The matchup with Detroit, we'll see how everything unfolds with Duren and what the health situations are, but I think people are gonna really underwrite the Celtics this year.
