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The Boston Celtics have had quite an offseason, and not in a positive direction. In an effort to avoid the dreaded second apron, the Celtics parted ways with Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday in a trade firesale that likely took them out of contention for next year.
Making the talent relinquishing a bit easier to stomach is the fact that Jayson Tatum will likely miss all of next season after tearing his Achilles vs the New York Knicks this past May, meaning it was already going to be something of a transitional year in 2025-26 for the Celtics anyway.
Recently, Tatum took to his Instagram account to share an intriguing quote as he recovers from the injury, posting a picture of a poster that said “Don't call me lucky. I failed more times than you tried” (via Noa Dalzell of CelticsBlog on X, formerly Twitter).
The quote speaks to Tatum's work ethic and mindset as he works to recover from the biggest setback of his future Hall of Fame career.
Where do the Celtics go from here?
The Celtics' projected starting lineup for next year looks decent until you get to the frontcourt, where it's possible that Joe Mazzulla will be forced to trot out a lineup of Georges Niang and Luka Garza.
Derrick White and Jaylen Brown both would appear poised to see an uptick in their scoring next year, but it's worth considering whether the Celtics may try to decrease their minutes so as not to add mileage to them in what will likely be a down season.
Boston can spend more time next year developing younger players like Jordan Walsh, and it will also be interesting to see how they integrate Anfernee Simons into the fold after acquiring him in the Jrue Holiday trade with the Portland Trail Blazers. It's also possible that Payton Pritchard takes another big leap this year after winning the Sixth Man of the Year award last season.
All told, priority number one for the Celtics this year is figuring out how to best position themselves so that they can hit the ground running once Tatum returns in 2026-27 and continue their quest for Banner 19.
