Adam Silver is sad to see a portion of the Boston Celtics’ ownership group sell a stake in the team considering how well the franchise has done in not just his tenure, but David Stern’s before him as well.
“I’m frankly saddened by it,” Silver said, (h/t MassLive’s Souichi Terada). “Just because not only have they won two championships (under current ownership), but beyond that, they’ve operated the team in a first-class manner and he’s been a first-class owner in this league.
“Again, I respect the decision that his family has made that it’s time to sell the team. I think it’s bittersweet for everyone. Hopefully the successor owner or owners will be as fantastic stewards of the team as they have been. They’ve been a model franchise with model ownership.”
Certainly, Silver was hopeful that the next ownership group could uphold Boston’s current unreal standard; missing the postseason just once since 2008. But his lamenting is a sign that it’s no guarantee.
There are major changes behind the scenes in Boston’s C-Suite, but the Celtics’ on-court product won’t look different at all in 2024-25 with the Banner 18 roster nearly completely retained by President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens. Thus far, only Oshae Brissett and Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk are unsigned from the 2023-24 roster.
The starting lineup was never in much doubt, but Jayson Tatum (five years, $313.9 million) and Derrick White (four years, $125.8 million) got deserved deals that will break the bank alongside Jaylen Brown’s $304 million Supermax and Jrue Holiday’s $135 million extension. Every second unit free agent retained (Xavier Tillman Sr., Luke Kornet, Neemias Queta) barely broke the bank.
No one new besides first-round pick Baylor Sheierman got a guaranteed deal. The championship status quo will be back in the shadow of massive changes going on behind the scenes.