With Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown sharing the court as All-Stars last week and with another, Kemba Walker, on the roster, there’s a false urgency to win now. Three trips to the Eastern Conference Finals in the last four years will create this expectation that the team just needs a few pieces to get over the hump to raise Banner 18, as if every year since 2017 was getting one step closer to a ring.
Truth is, every iteration of those conference finalists were all different, from the Isaiah Thomas fairy tale run to the Hospital Celtics to the elevation of Tatum and Brown to stardom in the bubble.