The Boston Celtics entered into a light rebuild in the 2025-26 offseason, trading away Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis over the summer to avoid the second apron of the league’s luxury tax. Despite that, the Celtics currently sit second in the Eastern Conference.
The Celtics also had a busy NBA trade deadline. Trading away Chris Bouche and Josh Minott, they also made a move to acquire Nikola Vučević and a future second-round pick from the Chicago Bulls for Anfernee Simons.
Boston Celtics Defied Expectations With Their Run
Following the Boston Celtics’ NBA trade deadline moves, the NBA champion and former Celtics star Kendrick Perkins deemed them the most dangerous team in the league. Perkins spent over eight years in Boston, where he won an NBA championship in 2008.
“The Celtics are the most dangerous team in the NBA. You have OKC, Detroit, and the Knicks. They have expectations. The Celtics are playing with house money. Nobody expected them to be here. Nobody, and they’re here.” Perkins stated.
“The Celtics, hear me out, are the most dangerous team in the NBA.”@KendrickPerkins on how the Celtics have found success without Jayson Tatum this season 🏀 pic.twitter.com/IqeAKnsVRJ
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) February 8, 2026
Following the conclusion of the 2024-2025 NBA season, the Celtics made the decision to trade away two of their biggest stars in Holiday and Porzingis. Additionally, they have been playing without their star player, Jayson Tatum, for the entire year.
Tatum was reportedly considering sitting out the rest of the 2025-26 season. The Celtics’ star tore his Achilles tendon in the Eastern Conference semifinals against the New York Knicks last year. He has not featured since.
“He’s hit a lot of the thresholds, he’s doing more and more and will continue to do more and more. There’s no pressure from us. But there’s also not going to be any of us saying, ‘Well, why don’t you just take another week?’ It’s going to be: When he’s ready, he’s ready.” General Manager Brad Stevens shared on Tatum.
Following Stevens’s statement, a recent update from ESPN’s Shams Charania revealed that Tatum had started five-on-five scrimmages. However, the NBA insider shared that there is still a way to go in his recovery, meaning that he may not return this year.
During the offseason, the Celtics were potentially looking at a salary bill worth almost half a billion. Instead, they have managed to go from far above the second apron to out of the luxury tax, saving over 325$ million in total payroll following Stevens’ moves.
“Obviously, this summer we had to get under the second apron. Every basketball reason in the world for that, and it was the right thing to do. The directive at this trade deadline was, let’s see if we can find some size.” Stevens explained.
Following the announcement that Tatum would miss most of the season, as well as trading away Porzingis and Holiday, this was expected to be a rebuild year in Boston. Instead, they currently sit second in the Eastern Conference and will only get better next year with the return of Tatum.
