Brad Stevens is proud but not surprised at position the Celtics are in entering the playoffs
BOSTON (AP) — Brad Stevens didn’t know the Boston Celtics would find themselves among the NBA’s top teams in the last week of the regular season. The Celtics president of basketball operations also never discounted the possibility before the season, despite every reason those outside of the team’s facility parroted about why it would be a bridge year following Jayson Tatum’s ruptured Achilles tendon injury and the offseason departures of Jrue Holiday, Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford. Yet, the Celtics entered Tuesday night’s game against the Charlotte Hornets two wins away from clinching the No.
2 seed in the East and as a legitimate NBA title contender. That doesn’t mean Stevens is ready to make any predictions. Far from it.
He’s content following the same one day at a time mantra that has driven him his entire basketball life, from the coaching sidelines and now in the front office. “I feel the exact same as I did at the beginning, I really feel that way normally,” Stevens said. “When we get into the playoffs, it’ll be the same thing.
It’s one game at a time. I don’t think in terms of the big picture as far as this individual team. I just think, I know that we can play.
” He’s also watched the remaining players that constitute his once-underestimated roster find individual new gears that have contributed to their collective success. With Tatum out to start the season, Jaylen Brown seized on the opportunity to be the No. 1 option and leader, taking his game to new levels on the offensive and defensive end.