May 20
Banner 18 Was Only the Beginning of Boston’s Cruelest Test
Celtics legacy after Banner 18 meets Boston’s cold standard as injuries, second-apron math, a crushing Game 7 collapse test the Jays’ era.
Banner 18 gave the Celtics their record back. It did not give them peace. Boston’s latest championship restored the franchise to the top of the NBA record book, but the aftermath has turned harsher: Jayson Tatum’s Achilles injury, Jaylen Brown’s heavier burden, second-apron roster losses, and a painful playoff collapse that made the 2024 title feel more fragile than finished. This Celtics era already proved it could win. Now comes the harder question in Boston: can it become something bigger than one perfect June?
