The 2022 Boston Celtics may be getting their first taste of the NBA Finals, but this is a franchise that's no stranger to the biggest stage in basketball.
Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Marcus Smart and the rest of the Celtics are four wins away from hoisting up Boston's first Larry O'Brien Trophy in over a decade.
A few Celtics icons who came before them made sure to chime in. Paul Pierce kept it simple with an instant reaction once the final buzzer sounded. He may be celebrating not having to hear from Dwyane Wade again after taking some trash talk in Game 6:
Yes siiiiiiiiiiiirrrrrrrrrrr
— Paul Pierce (@paulpierce34) May 30, 2022
10-time NBA champion Bill Russell not only congratulated the team for making it this far. He also dropped a bold prediction that Jayson Tatum could potentially win his second consecutive Celtic-named trophy – Bill Russell's Finals MVP award:
Congratulations to the #EasternConferenceFinals champions @celtics & to #JasonTatum for receiving the 1st ever LarryBird #ECFmvp award. Maybe soon the #BillRussellFinalsMVP award #BleedGreen @NBA @espn pic.twitter.com/yIaZjfIZxa
— TheBillRussell (@RealBillRussell) May 30, 2022
Another legend of equal stature in Celtics lore, Kelly Olynyk, just had to admire the game for what it was worth as a spectator. Olynyk was a one-time Game 7 hero himself for the Celtics back in the 2017 East Semis, when he dropped 26 points to clinch an East Finals berth:




All you can ask for from a game 7. Basketball at it’s finest. Fun to watch
— Kelly Olynyk (@KellyOlynyk) May 30, 2022
A few current Celtics also reacted on social media ahead of the long break before the NBA Finals. Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Marcus Smart all crafted their own celebratory posts:
Some said a split.
We said a family.
4 more to go. @jaytatum0 @FCHWPO pic.twitter.com/1GB4CBFLvI— marcus smart (@smart_MS3) May 30, 2022
View this post on Instagram
Finals Bound 🏆 pic.twitter.com/BZ2tyhieug
— Jaylen Brown (@FCHWPO) May 30, 2022
After a grueling three rounds that included two Game 7s, the Celtics are about to face their greatest challenge yet in the Golden State Warriors. But with the win fresh in their memory and the NBA Finals still days away, they get enough of a breather to celebrate.