The Boston Celtics find themselves facing a pivotal crossroads, not just in their playoff run but in the long-term future of the franchise.
After two brutal collapses at home to the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference Semifinals, the defending champions are now not only fighting to stay alive in the series, but to justify keeping their historic core intact. If they fail to advance, the repercussions could be seismic.
Senior NBA Insider Brian Windhorst summed it up starkly on First Take:
“What’s on the line is what’s going to happen to this team after this year. Now, this is a conversation I did not think I was going to be having on May 7th, or whatever, today is May 8th. I don’t even know what it is. I thought this was going to be a conversation for July.”
“But next year, their payroll is $460 million when you compute the taxes. If they keep their draft pick, where they got a first-round pick this year, and they fill out their roster, I don’t even know if they’re going to be able to bring Al Horford back. It’s going to top $500 million.”
“They’ve got new owners. They’re buying it for $6 billion. They need to take on all these partners just to put half the money together. I don’t know what’s going to happen there. But there’s a possibility this team is not going to come back.”
“No matter what, they may not be able to come back because they’re the most expensive sports team in the history of the game. That’s what’s on the line. This team has proven it’s a championship team. This team has proven it’s a 60-win team this year. This team might win the championship again this year.”
“But if they don’t get out of this series, I don’t know how you can justify spending $500 million on the roster again. I’ll tell you that. And so, to me, what’s on the line is whether these guys want to stay together and try to rack up a bunch more rings.”
That $500 million figure would make the 2025-26 Celtics the most expensive team in NBA history, by a wide margin. In a new CBA era designed to prevent dynasties from stockpiling talent with limitless spending, the Celtics are now facing heavy financial and operational restrictions if they remain over the second tax apron.
That means less flexibility in trades, no access to mid-level exceptions, and no ability to sign-and-trade. Simply put: they would be paying a fortune to field a team with limited avenues for improvement.
Even with all the talent in the world, Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Kristaps Porzingis, Jrue Holiday, Derrick White, and Al Horford, the Celtics are one more collapse away from having no choice but to make major changes.
As ESPN’s Shams Charania reported last week, the rest of the league is already bracing for Boston to explore trade options this offseason.
And it’s not just about financials. New ownership is on the horizon, with Bill Chisholm’s group buying the team for $6.1 billion. They’ve already had to bring in partners just to complete the purchase.
Sustaining a half-billion-dollar payroll, especially after a premature playoff exit, may not be something ownership is willing to stomach, no matter how much regular-season success the team has had.
The Celtics won 61 games this season. They finished second in offensive rating, fifth in defense, and held the second-best net rating in the NBA. But all of that may be overshadowed if they can’t advance past a Knicks team that’s out-hustling and out-executing them in clutch moments.
If the Celtics do lose this series, they’ll join a rare class of teams that followed a championship run with a dramatic flameout and face a long summer of tough decisions.
If Boston chooses to keep Tatum and Brown, the core duo, that likely means parting ways with Holiday, Porzingis, or White to reduce the financial burden. Al Horford’s return is uncertain, and Sam Hauser could be a cap casualty as well.
There is no running it back without a cost. And if this Knicks series ends in another heartbreak, it might mark the final chapter of the Celtics’ current era.
