The Boston Celtics kick off their 2022-23 campaign with a tough test on opening night against a very formidable Philadelphia 76ers side. For Jayson Tatum and Co., this game presents itself as their first opportunity to turn the page on what was a truly disheartening NBA Finals loss to the Golden State Warriors.

For Celtics legend Paul Pierce, however, the Hall of Famer sent out a stern reminder to Tatum and Co. about learning from their past. It would be a mistake to completely forget about their heartbreaking defeat in the Finals last season. Instead, the Celtics must use this as motivation for the campaign ahead (h/t Celtics on NBC Sports Boston on Twitter):

“It's important for him to understand what they went through and use that to feed them and feed off of that,” Pierce said. “We were so close. Play with a chip on their shoulder every night because it's never a guarantee that you'll get back there. But they're young, they're talented. If they can stay healthy and have the right mindset — I understand what it took for them to get there — they'll get there again.”

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Pierce clearly has all the confidence in the world in Tatum and the rest of the Celtics in their ability to bounce back this season. The truth is adamant that so long as this team has the right mindset, they should be back in the Finals again this year.

Paul Pierce did point out an important aspect about the Celtics staying healthy. Right now, they're already dealing with a major injury on the Robert Williams front, and Boston will be hoping to get their big man back sooner rather than later.