The Boston Celtics showed dominance last season as they secured their 18th NBA championship. They are a team spearheaded by two All-NBA talents in Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum , but the rest of their starters followed suit with incredible seasons, each worthy of All-Star nods. They easily had one of the best starting lineups of the century as they cruised through the playoffs.
Not only were their starters elite last season, they also had an above average bench, which was able to weather the storm while the first unit rested. Their incredible depth was a huge reason they won 64 games during the regular season and went 16-3 in the playoffs.
Heading into this upcoming season, the Celtics retained much of their roster from last season, especially within their rotation. So, there should be many similarities between last season’s rotations and their predicted lineups for the 2024-25 season.
They should be favorites to repeat as NBA champions with their stacked rotation.
Boston Celtics Starting Lineup
One of the most cohesive lineups in modern NBA history
The Celtics’ starting lineup works together incredibly well. They have two All-NBA players in Tatum and Brown, two former All-Stars in Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis , and perhaps the best role player in the league in Derrick White .
They have a balance of incredible defense with statistically the most elite offense of all time. Their cohesiveness is one that will likely be looked at by franchises for years to come.
| Boston Celtics’ Projected Starting Lineup | |
|---|---|
| PG | Jrue Holiday |
| SG | Derrick White |
| SF | Jaylen Brown |
| PF | Jayson Tatum |
| C | Kristaps Porziņģis |
With their lineup having such great success in its first year together, it came at an expensive cost. The team locked down the rest of their starters this offseason when White signed a four-year extension worth $125.9 million. Tatum signed a supermax contract for five years worth $314 million, which is currently the largest contract in NBA history.
In April, the Celtics extended Holiday to a four-year deal worth $135 million. During the 2023 offseason, Porziņģis signed a two-year $60 million extension after he was traded to the Celtics. They also signed Brown to a supermax five-year deal worth nearly $304 million last offseason, which was the biggest contract in history at the time.
Having locked up all of their starters to extensions over the last 15 months, the Celtics’ starting lineup isn’t going to change anytime soon. They proved to be one of the best lineups in their first season together, and took it a notch higher in the playoffs. Even with the injury to Porziņģis, veteran Al Horford was able to slide in and maintain the effectiveness of Boston’s elite first unit.
| Boston Celtics Starting Lineup Stats – 2023-24 Regular Season | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | Totals | NBA Rank |
| Minutes | 623 | 6th |
| Points | 1585 | 6th |
| Rebounds | 593 | 6th |
| Assists | 358 | 7th |
| Steals | 81 | 9th |
| Blocks | 92 | 3rd |
| +/- | +150 | 5th |
With Porziņģis set to miss the start of the season, that will likely be the case again at the beginning of the season until he returns. But with the Celtics’ depth, it will likely not be too big of an issue.
Boston Celtics Bench Lineup
Solid depth should keep the Celtics near the top of the standings
The Celtics’ bench lineup is incredibly solid, led by Horford and surrounding him with solid talents, including Sam Hauser and Payton Pritchard , who both came up big last season, especially in the playoffs.
They both shot above 38 percent from the three point line in both the regular season and playoffs, while providing solid scoring contributions with good defense.
| Celtics’ Projected Bench Lineup | |
|---|---|
| PG | Payton Pritchard |
| SG | Sam Hauser |
| SF | Oshae Brissett |
| PF | Al Horford |
| C | Luke Kornet |
With one of the larger second-units in the NBA, the Celtics will have several players vying for one of their three backup frontcourt spots. Outside of Pritchard, Hauser and Horford, the remaining two spots will likely be up for grabs between several players.
Luke Kornet showed great play at both ends of the floor last season, which is why he is slotted at backup center. He had the second-best BPM out of the bench players on the Celtics last year, barely trailing Horford. Xavier Tillman Sr. is also on the roster after being traded to the Celtics last season. He showed promise, and could potentially take some backup center minutes.
The biggest toss up in their bench lineup is the last spot, which will likely be fought for during the preseason between several players, including Oshae Brissett , Jaden Springer , Jordan Walsh and rookie Baylor Scheierman .
All of them are relatively unproven players, and on a stacked roster, minutes will need to be earned. The Celtics could also run bigger lineups in general if they wanted to, as they have several big men worthy of playing time.
Clutch Lineup
Celtics’ starters should also be their closers
The Celtics’ starting lineup proved its dominance last season, especially in the playoffs, so it’s easy to say that their closing lineup will be the same as their starting lineup. As one of the best lineups in general in the league last season, there isn’t any reason for a non-starter to play clutch minutes.
| Boston Celtics Projected Closing Lineup | |
|---|---|
| PG | Jrue Holiday |
| SG | Derrick White |
| SF | Jaylen Brown |
| PF | Jayson Tatum |
| C | Kristaps Porziņģis |
The only bench player who could play in a handful of clutch games is Horford, who has consistently shown he is still capable of high-level play, even at the age of 38. Due to his age and likely signs of more regression, Porziņģis will likely see the majority of the clutch minutes when he is healthy.
| Celtics Players Clutch Stats – 2023-24 season | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Category | Jrue Holiday | Derrick White | Jaylen Brown | Jayson Tatum | Kristaps Porziņģis |
| PPG | 1.4 | 1.9 | 1.9 | 2.9 | 2.3 |
| FG% | 47.6% | 53.3% | 50.0% | 36.1% | 56.7% |
| 3P% | 37.5% | 52.2% | 20.0% | 33.3% | 30.8% |
| +/- | 2.0 | 2.6 | 1.6 | 1.8 | 0.8 |
With four of their starters scoring nearly two points or more per game in clutch time, it’s safe to say that the Celtics have a strong lineup in the clutch.
Having three players shooting at least 50 percent during that time frame is also a huge boost, especially over the length of a season where finishing close games can make a difference in playoff seeding.
