In a survey of the 30 NBA general managers, the Boston Celtics were picked to win the 2025 NBA Finals. A staggering 83% of the general managers selected the Celtics to repeat as champions. In second place, the Oklahoma City Thunder had 13% of the votes, and the Dallas Mavericks had 3% in third. This is a large margin, even for a team like the Boston Celtics, and leaves them with high expectations in 2025. The Celtics were dominant in 2024, and the NBA general managers predict them to be dominant again.
The Odds of Repeating
In recent years, the NBA has been full of parity. With new teams and superstars emerging and others growing older, the NBA has experienced a revolving door of contenders. No NBA team has won back-to-back championships since the Golden State Warriors in 2017 and 2018. Since then, there has been a different NBA champion every year. Furthermore, no defending champion has advanced past the conference semifinals the following year. So, despite the general managers’ survey, the Boston Celtics do not have history.
If the low chances of repeating aren’t enough, the NBA has gotten much stronger. The team with the second-most votes, the Oklahoma City Thunder, made offseason additions of Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein. The Thunder were already the one-seed in a stacked Western Conference last season, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander playing at a near MVP level. Now, they’ve added more defense and rebounding. In the East, the Knicks and 76ers made big moves. The Knicks recently traded for Karl Anthony Towns and had already traded for Mikal Bridges. The 76ers also added Paul George.
This does not account for other contending teams like the Denver Nuggets, Dallas Mavericks, Milwaukee Bucks, and Minnesota Timberwolves. Although 97% of general managers picked the Boston Celtics to finish first in the Eastern Conference, their path back to the NBA Finals is much more difficult.
Can the Boston Celtics Repeat?
The odds of going back-to-back may be slim in a stronger NBA, but the general managers and the Boston fanbase have faith in the Celtics. If they were to repeat, firstly, they need to be healthy. That can be applied to all teams, but it is especially true to the Boston Celtics. Last season, Kristaps Porzingis missed most of the playoffs due to injury. This year, without him, the Celtics may not be able to go on another playoff run.
But the Celtics have looked strong thus far in the preseason. At their best in 2024, the team looked unbeatable. With confident play from Jaylen Brown, aggressive and efficient play from Jayson Tatum, and the ability to catch fire from the three-point line, the Boston Celtics are very hard to beat at their best. They went 16-3 in the 2024 playoffs, with their longest series going five games. Even if the rest of the league is stronger, the Boston Celtics are still one of the NBA’s most formidable teams.
The Boston Celtics will need to stay motivated and hungry, and with Joe Mazzulla at the helm, they can do that. If the team can stay healthy and play like they played down the stretch in 2024, there is no reason to believe they should not be contending for a championship again. The odds of repeating are unlikely, but 83% of NBA general managers is a large number which speaks volumes about this team’s strength.
Final Thoughts
The Boston Celtics are coming off one of the most successful seasons from an NBA team in recent memory. They finished with the best record in the NBA and went 16-3 in the playoffs to win the NBA Championship. Now, 83% of the NBA general managers predict they will win it again. As the new season approaches, the Boston Celtics will prepare to go back-to-back against a stronger NBA and prove the general managers right.
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