Mar 30, 2024; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Boston Celtics logo on warmup pants against the New Orleans Pelicans during the first half at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

Celtics Legend Reveals Why Boston Won’t Take Step Back This Season

Originally posted on Boston Celtics on SI
By Alex Kirschenbaum | Last updated Aug 18, 2025 12:00 PM ET

A Boston Celtics standout has expressed surprising optimism about the 2025-26 team.

Boston has ditched 2024 champion starters Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis in trades, plus backup center Luke Kornet (and likely reserve big man Al Horford, although he remains technically available) in free agency. The net return the Celtics received in the Porzingis and Holiday trades is combo guard Anfernee Simons and two-way player RJ Luis Jr.

The Celtics will also be without six-time All-Star power forward Jayson Tatum, recovering from an Achilles tendon tear suffered during the playoffs.

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Understandably, Boston isn't expected to compete for its third straight 60-plus-game season.

In a new conversation with Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe, former two-time Boston champion Cedric Maxwell claimed he felt that head coach Joe Mazzulla would be able to push the team back into semi-contention.

“Here’s the beauty about all that,” Maxwell said. “Joe Mazzulla’s not going to let them take a step back. Joe Mazzulla is going to use that as fuel to have these guys compete on a nightly basis. We’ve seen teams in the NBA, perhaps not as talented as other teams but at the end, because they played hard every single night, you get your opportunities to win.”

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“To me, this is a great year for Joe, that’s what I look at,” Maxwell said. “I don’t look at anything else other that who Joe Mazzulla has been. He’s competitive. He’s fiery. And if somebody were to ask him if this is a rebuilding situation, you might have a fight on your hands because Joe Mazzulla is not going to take that.”

“I think this new role will help him grow immensely,” Maxwell said. “I think he’s capable of doing that and right now he’s going to be forced to do that. It isn’t a choice for him. By defection, he’s put into that position.”

The 6-foot-8 small forward was never an All-Star during his playing career, but he did earn a Finals MVP honor for his efforts in the 1981 NBA Finals.

In a six-game series victory against the Moses Malone-era Houston Rockets, Maxwell averaged 17.7 points on 56.8 percent field goal shooting and 75.9 percent free throw shooting, 9.5 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.0 blocks a night. Maxwell also went on to play a major role in the team's 1984 championship run, although Larry Bird was the Finals MVP that year (and in 1986).