The Boston Celtics lost plenty of talent this offseason. But they have a plan to make up for it.
The Celtics held their first training camp practice Tuesday with an overhauled roster that lost four key members of its championship core — Jrue Holiday, Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford and Luke Kornet — and will be without star player Jayson Tatum for most (or potentially all) of the 2025-26 season.
And to hear assistant coach Sam Cassell tell it, head coach Joe Mazzulla welcomed Boston’s newcomers by putting them to work.
“We want be the hardest-playing team in basketball, and that’s how our camp is going right now,” Cassell told 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Zolak & Bertrand on Wednesday.
“We’re having a hard training camp. I’ve been in this business for 34 years, my 34th training camp, and this is the hardest training camp right now. It’s only one day, but it’s a lot. But our players are embracing it.”
That’s a bold statement from Cassell, who has played with or coached for nine different NBA teams over more than three decades in the league. So, what has made this Celtics training camp harder than the rest?
“We’re going three hours nonstop, and that’s just the practice time,” Cassell explained. “We’re going 30 for 30: 30 minutes of individual work, 30 minutes of just weight room work, then practice.”
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The Celtics brought in several newcomers with high motors this offseason, from first-round pick Hugo Gonzalez to free agent acquisition Josh Minott, whose relentless energy earned him the nickname “The Lawnmower.”
That play style should appeal to Mazzulla, who wants Boston’s new group to crank up the effort even more this season, according to Cassell.
“Joe wants to push the envelope,” Cassell said. “He wants to force the issue. He wants to, not break them, but take them to a point where, ‘Man, this is hard,’ you know what I’m saying? And that’s how we’re going to have to play this year.
“We’re going to play this year balls-out. We’re gonna turn our hat backwards and get after it, and that’s Joe Mazzulla. We’re gonna turn our hat backwards and get after it.”
The Celtics will need more than just extra effort to win games this season, especially with so many unproven players thrust into the rotation. But don’t be surprised if Mazzulla’s club plays with an extra chip on its shoulder that could help this group exceed expectations.