The Boston Celtics have fallen just a win shy of reaching their first NBA Finals in nearly a decade after coming up short against the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 7 of Eastern Conference Finals.

Boston was able to make a deep playoff run without the services of their All-Star duo of Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward leading the charge. According to Jay King of The Athletic, general manager Danny Ainge voiced on Monday that he found the notion that the Celtics didn't need the services of Irving and Hayward in order to get over the top in the Easter and potentially challenge for an NBA title.

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It was an impressive run toward almost reaching the NBA Finals without their two key players in the mix. Irving and Hayward could have stepped into high impact offensive roles that could have led to them helping the Celtics being a more potent offensive team. Their shortcoming on that end of the floor was put on display in Game 7 shooting just 34.1 percent from the field and 17.9 percent from 3-point range.

Granted, their combined absence allowed for some promising growth and play from their young backcourt of Terry Rozier, Jaylen Brown, and Jayson Tatum that should lend well to what could lie ahead of them. It also put on display their inexperience at this stage of the playoffs where Irving could provide a steady hand in those key moments that could have lifted the Celtics over the top in Eastern Conference Finals. Hayward doesn't necessarily have that playoff experience, but he has shown to be a proven and reliable scorer over his career.

This wasn't necessarily the ending to the playoffs that Boston had hoped, but it does push forward a bright future ahead of the franchise when Hayward and Irving return to the fold next season.