This loss by the Boston Celtics will inevitably lead to some tough conversations.
Most importantly, those talks will take place within the walls of the organization itself, as the 2-seed Celtics sit and wonder what went wrong after losing in the Eastern Conference Finals to the 8-seed Miami Heat in Game 7, on their home floor, by 19 points. There’s simply no doubt that going from an NBA Finals berth to this kind of crushing defeat is a step backward for a team with so much promise.
The problem, now, is that they may have only one year left to figure it out with their current core led by Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. It could be decision time with Brown sooner than you think, as he enters the final year of his contract in 2023-24.
And that’s why questions will arise of whether big decisions need to be made with this Celtics team. This summer, not next.