Former Celtics Forward Discusses 'First Real Taste of Adversity' Faced In Boston

BOSTON — Late in the first quarter, with the game still in doubt before turning into a blowout, Terance Mann picked up a Celtics turnover and ran off in transition. Josh Minott streaked up the right slot, caught a pass from Mann, and rose up for a monster dunk over Hugo Gonzalez, drawing a foul in the process.

WHY NOT MINOTT!!! 😤 pic.twitter.com/lCenZZp6RJ
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) February 28, 2026

Minott spent the first part of his season dunking on that rim plenty as one of the surprising Celtics fueling Boston’s early success. He started ten games for Boston, including nine in a row from late October to early November where he scored double-digits six times, set a career-high with 21 points, and also grabbed a career-best 15 rebounds.

“It felt good to be back,” Minott said in the significantly more cramped visitors locker room across the hall from where he used to sit. “... and it didn’t. Yeah. That’s about it.”

That's Minott in a nutshell. A little philosophical, a little vague, but filled with talent that he’s still trying to focus into a regular spot in the NBA. It looked for a while that it was going to happen in Boston, and then it didn’t.

‘I don’t really know [that it went] wrong,” he said. “It’s obviously a very talented group and we are all capable of being disruptive defenders. We all knew it was a deep team and very talented. That’s how I saw it.”

That depth pushed Minott further down the bench as the season went on. Jordan Walsh, Hugo Gonzalez, and Baylor Scheierman all found their way into the rotation in the process. And then Minott suffered an ankle injury that cost him most of January, which effectively ended his time in Boston.

“It was my first real taste of adversity since I got drafted,” he said. “That was definitely a mental test for sure. The Boston staff really helped me with my recovery process, Brooklyn as well since I’ve been here. It’s kind of more fine-tuning now. It’s different when one day you are doing crazy dunks and the next day, you can’t walk and get upstairs.”

Minott became a cap casualty at the trade deadline. He was one of three players out of the rotation dumped for nothing in an effort to get under the luxury tax. Because Joe Mazzulla is the coach, it’s hard to say whether Minott would have been permanently parked on the bench or would have been given another opportunity had he stayed, but that's something for Brooklyn to decide now.

“I got a different jersey on. That’s about it,” Minott said. “Live, eat, breathe, Brooklyn now. It’s been a very welcoming environment for sure, from the G League to here. It’s been a great staff, I’ve been well received and just continuing to work.”

Minott got some run with Brooklyn’s G League affiliate, ironically against the Maine Celtics, before making his debut with the big club. The 16 minutes against Boston were his first significant minutes since playing 17 for the Celtics against Toronto in late December.

It’s Minott’s next chance to make a name for himself in the NBA. He has the physical gifts to do make great plays … just ask Gonzalez … but he’ll have to prove himself all over again with a new organization. Situation matters in the NBA, and maybe this is the one that will give him a more permanent home.

“I left on no bitter note,” he said. “You see it, I dapped everybody up. It’s always love with everybody here unless we play them, then it’s hate. After the game is over, those 48 minutes were enemies but I definitely had a great experience here for sure.”