This team will not repeat?.

[TheReaLPuba]

?they?re soft mentally and physically.

The defense is putrid - way too many layups and open looks.

If a few 3?s clank then everyone starts clanking and there?s no other creative offensive schemes to go to.

We consistently play down to our opponents (while inexplicably resting players) and do not take the regular season seriously.

This team just isn?t hungry anymore.

[celticinorlando]

This team doesn't care one bit about the regular season...the cavs will overachieve to win in the regular season and the Cs are just not good so far this season.

[Goldstar88]

Yep. Trade Tatum/Brown and then fire Joe!

[Atzar]

I do enjoy the hand-wringing over a defending championship team on pace to win roughly 60 games. 

[ozgod]

Wrist slitting already after a 4 pt loss? We shot 20% from 3, in today?s NBA most teams will lose with that percentage but we only lost by 4. Too early to get the razors out 

[ozgod]

If Al hadn?t bricked his 3 and Da Silva had missed his we might be saying awesome win, held their composure, won ugly despite shooting terrible?such are the moments on which public opinion of the team shifts from winners to washed up has been losers

[blink]

way too much over-reaction.  I am bored with the regular season already too.   Hard to be locked in every night. 

Tonight too many turnovers, too many lucky orlando shots, and a WHOLE lot of crap non-calls against us in the 2nd half.   move onto the next one.

[scaryjerry]

They?re not likely to get threw an easy east with there stars out for the whole or half the  series and then a 5th seed in the finals?that?s for sure.
Every year is a new year and you have to approach it with the same mindset as they did last year and develop good habits etc.
So far this year I?m giving them the benefit of the doubt and think there still the best team but I?m starting to get a little skeptical.

[scaryjerry]

way too much over-reaction.  I am bored with the regular season already too.   Hard to be locked in every night. 

Tonight too many turnovers, too many lucky orlando shots, and a WHOLE lot of crap non-calls against us in the 2nd half.   move onto the next one.

This same excuse is used every time they lose lol
Always luck for the other team and bad refs if the Celtics lose. So corny.

[Goldstar88]

way too much over-reaction.  I am bored with the regular season already too.   Hard to be locked in every night. 

Tonight too many turnovers, too many lucky orlando shots, and a WHOLE lot of crap non-calls against us in the 2nd half.   move onto the next one.

This same excuse is used every time they lose lol
Always luck for the other team and bad refs if the Celtics lose. So corny.

Almost as corny as people expecting them to win every game. 

[jambr380]

It's an odd-ending year. We always underachieve in odd years. So, by that very sound logic, we will not repeat. And with this team being so far into the luxury tax/2nd apron, there will probably be some very tough decisions needing to be made if we aren't at least in the Finals.

It's hard to win a championship, though. We have been competitive for years and finally had things break our way last year. You can't count on that every year. I know Tatum is way more important to our team than other fanbases give him credit for, but there is literally no excuse to lose to ORL without Banchero/Franz. I'm glad I wasted my money for the 2nd year in a row to watch us completely blow a big lead going into the 2nd half against these guys.

[BringToughnessBack]

I am getting flashbacks of the posts from last year. Yeah, we have no chance. Our best player did not play but the sky is truly falling. In a 7 game series, I do not see any team that will stop us from getting back to the finals.

[Phantom255x]

I think the overall field is also a lot better this year. East has 4 legit teams (ORL, CLE, NY, MIL), and even some of the lower seeds are not easy outs (ATL, IND, MIA). And the West as we know is already pretty loaded.

The path is going to matter more this year than usual. That's another reason why I think seeding is gonna matter. There's going to be 1 or 2 teams that get screwed this year and I fear it could be the Celtics if they don't get out of this funk.

Even in 2022, we had a pretty tough path with BKN (Durant-Irving), then MIL (prime Giannis and Jrue+Middleton), then the 1 seed Heat with Butler/Bam/Spo. I'd argue that also affected us come Finals. MIA meanwhile only had to play the Hawks and then a compromised Sixers team with Embiid hurt to get to the ECF.

[Donoghus]

I?m gonna save the hand wringing until they?re facing an elimination game in a playoff series.

They have losses like this every season. At the end of the day, I still think they?re the best team in the league and I?d be hard pressed to find a team that can beat them in a 7 game series.

[keevsnick]

It annoys the living hell out of me how we as a fan base have to do this after every loss.

So let me be clear, if you're calling the team soft because they lost a game in December by 4 points then the only thing soft is you, as a fan.

Relax.