Opponents deem Celtics one of the “most unselfish teams” in sports — here’s why

BOSTON — Just how unselfish are the Boston Celtics?

The standard numbers don’t pop out. The Celtics average 26 assists per game — good for 14th in the NBA. And only the Clippers have a higher isolation frequency.

But, when opposing coaches are preparing to play against Boston, they’re routinely struck by the selflessness they observe in their film reviews.

“This is one of the most unselfish teams that we’ve seen — consistently — and they’ve got immense levels of talent all over the floor,” said Pistons coach JB Bickerstaff before Thursday’s Pistons-Celtics match-up, in which Boston routed Detroit 123-99.

Bickerstaff is intimately familiar with these Celtics; his Pistons have already faced them three times this season (all losses). And, as the head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers last year, he watched his team’s elimination at the Celtics’ hands in the Eastern Conference semi-finals.

The Celtics will make the extra pass — whether the recipient is a superstar like Jayson Tatum or Jaylen Brown, or a more unproven role player like Drew Peterson or Jordan Walsh.

“I know this sounds crazy, but there aren’t that many teams that, at that level, will just throw the ball to the open man,” Bickerstaff said. “That shows the ultimate amount of trust in the team.”

The result of an unwavering willingness to defer to others has been that five (!) Celtics players average at least 16.5 points per game; Jayson Tatum leads the way with 28.2 points per game, Jaylen Brown is next with 24.5, Kristaps Porzingis averages 20.3, Derrick White 17.5, and Payton Pritchard 16.5.

It’s a balanced feat that has never been accomplished in the franchise’s storied history. And, as it currently stands, no other NBA team boasts five 16.5-points per-game scorers.

The other, more important outcome of the Celtics’ selfless culture, is more obvious: it has resulted in victories. The Celtics boast a 20-5 record so far this season and an average win margin of 10 points — marks that are both good for second-best in the NBA.

And, last year’s championship served as a sort of proof of concept for their philosophy.

“You know it works. So, you should buy into it, and we should continue to do it,” Pritchard said. “And what I love about our group is it really can be somebody’s night on different nights — KP could go for 30, JB [for] 30, JT… that’s what makes it so good. You can’t really game-plan one person. It could be anybody’s night.”

Derrick White attributes the team’s selflessness to a confluence of factors; there are the individual players and their mindsets. Then, there’s the coaching staff — and the culture established at the top.

“We got a lot of great guys, and guys who know how to play the right way,” White said. “Obviously, we have a lot of talent.”

But, White said the on-court selflessness is also a learned skill; Mazzulla and his assistants routinely emphasize to the Celtics the importance of getting the best available shot.

“The coaching staff is always harping on us making the right read,” White said.

The unusual year-to-year continuity also helps; all of the Celtics’ rotation players were on last year’s roster, and most of the coaching staff is back from the 2024 championship run, too.

“It didn’t happen overnight, but every time we come in here, we try to get better and learn from our mistakes,” White said.

Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, who has game-planned against the Celtics in four of the last five postseasons, has observed the Celtics’ growth firsthand.

“They move the ball much better than they have in the past,” Spoelstra said after the Celtics defeated the Heat earlier this month.

Milwaukee Bucks coach Doc Rivers was similarly struck by the Celtics’ trust in one another last week.

“They’ll pass until there’s one second on the clock to try to find someone,” Rivers said. “They did that a couple of times and that’s why they are what they are. That wasn’t them two years ago — and it is them now. That’s what makes them the champions.”

To outsiders, it’s quite apparent.

“They just seem like they care about winning more than anything else,” Bickerstaff said.

Joe Mazzulles stresses the Celtics have turned egos into a strength

The third-year head has made clear that the perceived “unselfishness” doesn’t mean that his players don’t have egos — in fact, it’s far from that.

“It’s important to know that we do have egos — we just put them in the right place,” said Mazzulla. “It’s not that we shouldn’t have them. We should have them as long as they’re put in the right place.”

And, when examining the long list of individual accolades on the Celtics, there’s no question about why key players don’t lack confidence.

The Celtics have five former All-Stars on the roster; Jayson Tatum and Al Horford lead the way with five All-Star selections a piece, Jaylen Brown has three selections, Jrue Holiday has two, and Kristaps Porzingis has one.

Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images

They also had an NBA-high three players on the U.S. Olympic basketball team (Tatum, Holiday, and White). And, most of the Celtics’ core entered the league with high expectations — Tatum, Brown, and Horford were all selected with the No. 3 pick, and Porzingis was drafted fourth overall. Holiday (17th), Payton Pritchard (26th), and White (29th) were all first-round picks, too.

“We have a lot of talented guys,” Mazzulla said. “You want them to be confident, you want them to be at their best. Ego can be a strength if it’s derived into the right things. It’s being the best player that you can possibly be, knowing how you can impact the game, taking pride in that — and doing that.”

Mazzulla wants his players to know they’re great, and that their greatness can contribute to winning.

“You have to know that if you want to play at this level, and if you want to take advantage of the talent that you have,” Mazzulla said.

Payton Pritchard embodies that harnessed ego as well as anyone on the roster. The backup point guard fell completely out of the rotation in the 2022-23 season — Mazzulla’s first at the helm. But, he never wavered in the belief that he could be an impactful player on the Celtics.

Now, the hard work and confidence have resoundingly paid off; he’s the clear front-runner for Sixth Man of the Year, averaging 16.5 points per game and shooting a scorching 43.2% from three. And, he’s no longer fighting for rotation minutes — Pritchard has played the fourth-most minutes of any Celtics player this season.

“We all have egos,” Pritchard said. “We’re all really confident people, and I don’t think we’d be in the position we are in today without a little bit of that. You got to have that. But, it’s understanding that at times, you got to do what’s best for the team. And that’s a selflessness that our guys have — and should continue.”

Still, when Pritchard is in the game, he’s not just thinking about getting his points, despite how plentiful they’ve been. Pritchard was left on the floor during blowout minutes in the fourth quarter of Thursday’s Celtics win, sharing the court with Neemias Queta, Drew Peterson, and Jordan Walsh.

And, during that stretch, he made it a point to find a cutting Queta on back-to-back possessions with five minutes to play — recognizing how it could benefit his confidence in the long run.

“I got Neemi two easy looks — just help guys get going a little bit, take the pressure off, help guys get in the flow,” Pritchard said.

A concerted effort to find Queta in garbage time is nothing spectacular, but Pritchard’s mindset at that moment is a small piece of what has made the Celtics work.

“They have a trust and understanding of what can lead to long-term success,” Mazzulla said. “You have to commit to that every day — and I think the guys work to commit to that.”

Winning the championship last year helped solidify the belief that the Celtics players’ deference to one another yields positive outcomes.

But Mazzulla said it’s less about last year’s title and more about the group’s collective character.

“I think it starts with the guys that we have in the locker room,” Mazzulla said.

Other NBA teams are taking notice of Boston’s selflessness.

And, they’re finding that as easy as it is to praise, it’s difficult to imitate.

“Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown — those guys could shoot the ball every time they wanted to,” Bickerstaff said. “But they sacrifice for themselves to make the right play over and over again. I think it sets the tone. They’ve built and established a great culture of that here — and one that people should try to emulate more.”