The Boston Celtics are facing a potential gap year amid a roster retooling caused by Jayson Tatum’s torn Achilles and looming financial constraints.
The Celtics will enter the 2025-26 campaign with a significantly different look compared to their 2024 championship roster. Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday were both traded in June as part of cost-cutting maneuvers, and the club is also expected to lose Al Horford after Luke Kornet’s departure in free agency.
Boston has played in nine consecutive games on Christmas Day but will not be on the holiday schedule this season, according to Shams Charania of ESPN. This marks the Celtics’ first Christmas Day absence since 2015, as they navigate the campaign with Jaylen Brown as their No. 1 option while Tatum is expected to miss most, if not all, of the season.
🚨🎄 NBA Christmas Day 2025 on ABC and ESPN, per sources:
– Cleveland Cavaliers at New York Knicks
– San Antonio Spurs at Oklahoma City Thunder
– Houston Rockets at LA Lakers
– Dallas Mavericks at Golden State Warriors
– Minnesota Timberwolves at Denver Nuggets
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 8, 2025
MORE: Celtics connected to two-time All-Star, 18.5 PPG trade candidate
Last season, the Celtics deployed a similar roster to their 2024 NBA Finals-winning team but fell to the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference semifinals, during which Tatum suffered his Achilles injury.
Boston finished the 2024-25 regular season with a 61-21 record, placing second in the East and marking its fourth consecutive campaign with over 50 wins.
Now, the team aims to remain in playoff contention without Tatum, who could potentially return for a postseason push.
Despite competing in a wide-open Eastern Conference, the Celtics are not expected to make significant waves next season and will rely heavily on Brown and Derrick White to lead a squad with an underwhelming frontcourt group following its salary-shedding offseason moves.
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