Celtics' Star Reflects on Roster Core's Legacy: 'Special Group'

The Celtics have reached the Eastern Conference Finals six times in the last eight years. They've now broken through to the championship round twice in the last three years.

Jaylen Brown's been there for all of it. Jayson Tatum has starred alongside him in five of those playoff runs. So has Al Horford, who left after the tumultuous 2018-19 campaign that ended his and Kyrie Irving's tenure in Boston before the former returned to help the C's reach the NBA Finals in 2022.

There's a championship standard that the franchise with 17 NBA titles in its trophy case and the city they star in hold. However, their success deserves its just due.

When asked to reflect on the legacy of the Celtics' core, whose success Marcus Smart and Robert Williams played integral roles in before Boston's bold decisions to reconfigure its roster, striking deals for Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday, Jaylen Brown expressed, "I think this is a special group. I really do."

The three-time All-Star continued, "The core group of it has been here for a few years now. We've been able to go through the experiences of having success but not having success at the same time. I think to solidify the ultimate goal is to get over the hump and win. I think that will add a lot to our legacy. But as of right now, that story is kind of still untold."

Further Reading

Celtics Stars Reflect on Lessons Learned from 2022 NBA Finals

Kristaps Porzingis Details Mental Side of Rehab as He Readies for NBA Finals Return

Kyrie Irving Shares Regret and What He Takes from Playing in Boston

Celtics' All-Defensive Guards Relishing Chance to Defend Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic

Jayson Tatum Grateful for Second Chance in NBA Finals

Joe Mazzulla Eviscerates Contrived Narrative about Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown

Celtics-Mavericks NBA Finals Has Kyrie Irving Between Boston and Banner 18

Al Horford Returns to NBA Finals Aiming to Add to a Legacy Already Cemented