Reflecting on a rare Celtics season where the glass is both half full and half empty

What are we supposed to do now?

But seriously, after watching the Celtics collapse against the 76ers and seeing their season come to a crashing halt, it feels like something is missing from spring.

We’ve all devoted countless hours to watching this team play in May and June, and knowing that the journey is completely finished as of May 2 just doesn’t feel right.

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In one sense, this team ultimately underachieved and fell short of its potential. In another, if you view it through a broader lens, the Celtics also overachieved and exceeded expectations from the start.

“When you start a season, you think you’re going to be playing until June every single year,” Sam Hauser told reporters. “That’s the expectation, especially being in Boston and with the Celtics — the standard is a championship, and when you fall short of that, it’s disappointing. But there’s a lot of good that we can take from this year and a lot of things that we can build off of.”

As you wake up in a somber daze, and solemnly stare out your window, I encourage you to view this season through both a glass-half full and glass-half-empty prism. I don’t think it’s accurate to say it was a complete success, and I also don’t think it’s fair to say it was a complete failure.

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In that sense, it’s a very unique season and one unlike any other I can recall. The only one that comes close is the Isaiah Thomas masterpiece in 2017, but that one felt different as the Celtics advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals. This playoff run was over before it began. So, how can fans not be disappointed?

No, no, don’t get me wrong … You can absolutely be disappointed, but you should also be grateful. Back when the season began, many expected it would end somewhat like it eventually did. The Celtics would lose in the first round to a more-talented opponent and fade into the night as a middling team.

But, they didn’t do so as the 7-seed. They did so as the 2-seed, which makes it so much more difficult to digest.

Remember, they weren’t supposed to be here. In my opinion, these are the most gratifying seasons, where a…

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Publish date : 2026-05-04 09:57:00

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