Why Celtics' dominance proves team has already moved on from recent championship

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BOSTON — Becoming complacent after a major victory is such a common phenomenon that it has a name: a championship hangover. Yet, in the wake of winning a title and a massive pregame ceremony celebrating that victory, the Boston Celtics showed no signs of lethargy on Tuesday night. In fact, they played like the four-month gap between Game 5 of the 2024 NBA Finals and Banner Night never happened.

To open the 2024-25 NBA season, the Celtics dismantled the New York Knicks, prevailing 132-109 in front of the Boston faithful at TD Garden. All of the hoopla just 30 minutes before tipoff, which included the C’s receiving their enormous championship rings and raising banner no. 18 to the rafters, could’ve thrown off a less attentive team. But not the reigning champions.

Led by Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla, the Green Team enjoyed the fruits of their labor and immediately got to work. They dropped a whopping 43 points in the first quarter and raced out to a 19-point lead before the Knicks could even tie their shoes. Boston would go up by as much as 35 points during its season debut and never allowed New York to truly get into the game.

The Knicks weren’t just a sacrificial lamb the NBA brought out for the Celtics, either. Featuring stars like Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns, New York was supposed to compete with Boston and serve as the new challenger to the Eastern Conference throne.

Instead, Boston’s offense crushed New York, putting up a franchise record of 29 triples in one contest (just one 3-pointer shy of the all-time NBA record). It’s not a total shock that the C’s, who won 64 games last regular season, are still the team to beat. It’s even less of a shock, given the focused mindset Mazzulla has instilled in his players.

“The word distraction, it can be good or bad, and we talked about it yesterday as a team that this is a good distraction, as long as we focus on what led to this,” Mazzulla said of Banner Night. “This banner was a byproduct of our toughness, the mindset, the details, the execution, the effort, togetherness, all those things. So as we’re going through this ring ceremony, cherish it and focus on the process of what goes into that.”

Joe Mazzulla was pleased with how quickly his team moved on from the banner ceremony:

"I'm proud of the guys … We weren't stuck in the past." pic.twitter.com/OIidI3LPe1

— Daniel Donabedian (@danield1214) October 23, 2024

Mazzulla’s men executed at the highest level, as they turned the ball over just three times while posting 33 assists to the Knicks’ 20. Although much of the Celtics core came together last season, they moved the ball like they’ve been together for decades. There was never the slightest hint of any Celtic playing distracted.

“I thought the guys did a great job, but it’s who they are, and that’s why I have innate trust and confidence in who these guys are,” Mazzulla told the media after the 23-point win. “But the biggest thing I’m proud of is the mindset of the guys … We weren’t stuck in the past.”

How the Celtics have embraced Mazzulla’s focused mentality

In many ways, Banner Night officially closed the Celtics’ championship run. The C’s loved ending their 16-year title drought and having their hard work acknowledged by almost 20,000 fans, but they know they can’t dwell on what was—especially if they want to secure back-to-back banners.

Veteran center Al Horford, who waited 17 seasons for his first NBA ring, had every reason to be distracted on Tuesday. However, he mirrored Mazzulla’s mindset and looked to the future.

“I felt like this closed the book,” he said. “We’ve been waiting for this. I’ve been waiting for a lot of years for this and it happened. We enjoyed it, but we’re moving forward. We’re moving forward. And we understand the opportunity that we have in front of us and we just have to cherish it.”

Celtics star Jayson Tatum could’ve had his mind elsewhere too. The five-time All-Star has garnered plenty of individual accolades in his successful career, yet the critics consistently tore him down for never winning a championship. That knock against his game vanished in June, and the St. Louis native was equally motivated four months later.

Tatum dropped a game-high 37 points in 30 minutes of play while shooting an astounding 77.7% from the floor. He also notched a game-high 10 assists and dominated the Knicks from start to finish. Despite the Banner Night festivities and his incredible opening night, Tatum’s focus didn’t waver.

Jayson Tatum is up to 37 points as he buries his 8th three of the game pic.twitter.com/gbDwSCa7eg

— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) October 23, 2024

“After tonight, we got to put it behind us, right? We got the same approach as last year that we just tried to get better every day,” he described. “We just tried to get a little bit better. We not looking to June, we looking forward to Thursday. And that's our mindset.”

One of Boston’s mantras during the 2023-24 campaign was “skip no steps.” Whether it was a regular season matchup with a bottom-feeder or a primetime contest versus a championship contender, Tatum and company took it seriously. The Green Team won the latter on Tuesday and will experience the former on Thursday night with the Washington Wizards, who won just 15 games last season. Regardless of the Wizards’ record, the Celtics know they can’t rest on their laurels, because that’s not what champions do.

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