BOSTON — The NBA is a constantly evolving league, serving as living example of the “adapt or die” philosophy. And if the Boston Celtics don’t adjust to the current basketball landscape — especially with star forward Jayson Tatum out — they could miss the playoffs for the first time in over a decade.
The Celtics have a plan though, and it all revolves around speed.
During Media Day on Tuesday, the C’s frequently referenced playing with pace. For anybody who’s been paying attention, this shouldn’t be a huge shock as Celtics star Jaylen Brown has consistently said that his team would benefit from more speed.
“I want to play fast, play faster,” he reiterated. “But I’ve been saying that for a few years now. Some of the teams we saw in the Finals, they play fast. Indiana plays fast. OKC plays fast, and more and more teams play with that pace. That’s the pace I’ve always wanted to play at. Our personnel hasn’t always been able to suit that, but I think we’ll be able to play a little faster this year, and I’m excited about that.”
The stats don’t lie. Last postseason, the Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder led all playoff teams in pace with the latter squad defeating the former in seven games in the 2025 NBA Finals. Conversely, the Celtics were second-to-last in pace during the 2024-25 regular season.
While Tatum often prefers to take things a little slower up the court, Brown is always trying to get out in transition. And given the fact that Tatum is out indefinitely while recovering from an Achilles rupture, it makes sense that Boston is reconstructing its offense around Brown.
What do the rest of the Celtics think about pushing the pace?
The 2024 NBA Finals MVP isn’t the only player who wants to move with urgency. First-year Celtic Luka Garza also revealed that he is a fan of the expected change.
“A lot of [what we’re doing] has to do with playing at a high and fast pace and getting up and down the court, which, as a player, I enjoy,” Garza stated. “That’s always been where I feel like I’m my best, being able to push the pace, run the court. You know, whatever it has to be — set early screens, get guys open.”
Another new Celtic, 22-year-old Josh Minott, made it clear that Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla plans to implement a speedier style of play during the 2025-26 campaign.
“We definitely speak about the pace we want to play with,” Minott said. “We want to be the fastest team; we want to have no lag time in any decision making we do, and that’d be taking the ball out after a bucket…[We’re] definitely making it a point of emphasis to be the fastest team on the court.”
With the regular season less than a month away, it won’t take long for opposing teams to note Boston’s pushed pace. Even Celtics big man Xavier Tillman Sr. has already felt a difference from last season with how the Green Team practices.
“I’ve felt my conditioning just go up,” Tillman said. “We’re playing like at a warp speed — especially the five man — as you guys are going to see when we start playing. We play really, really fast.”
Celtics’ plans could change when Jayson Tatum returns
If Tatum is able to come back from injury earlier than anticipated, perhaps the Celtics will slow things down again. However, for now, it seems like Boston’s offense will continue to prioritize open looks from beyond the arc while making pace a new focal point.
Moreover, Tatum is still at least multiple months away from a potential return and isn’t being rushed during the rehab process by anyone within the Celtics organization (except maybe Tatum himself).
“There’s no pressure to return back any sooner than, you know, when I’m 100% healthy,” he stressed. “No pressure from Brad, Joe, the team, the organization. The most important thing is that I’m 100% recovered and healthy whenever I do come back.”
In Tatum’s absence, Brown should finally serve as the go-to guy on offense and play at the speed he likes to. Introducing a novel plan of attack — which previously worked for the best teams in the NBA last year — may be Boston’s only chance at literally and figuratively keeping up with the rest of the league in a Tatum-less world.
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