2022–23 Boston Celtics season

The 2022–23 Boston Celtics season was the franchise's 77th season in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Celtics entered the season as the defending Eastern Conference and Atlantic Division champions, with hopes of claiming a record-breaking eighteenth NBA Championship, having lost to the Golden State Warriors in six games in the 2022 NBA Finals the season prior.

On September 22, 2022, head coach Ime Udoka was suspended until June 30, 2023, for a violation of the team's code of conduct, following a team investigation into an inappropriate relationship between himself and a female Celtics staff member. As a result, assistant coach Joe Mazzulla was named interim head coach. After a 42–17 start to the season, Mazzulla was named the permanent head coach and signed to a contract extension on February 16, 2023. By the end of the season, the Celtics had managed to improve on their previous season's record by six games, finishing with a 57–25 record and achieving their most regular season wins since 2009.

The Celtics qualified for the 2023 NBA playoffs as the #2-seed in the Eastern Conference, behind the Milwaukee Bucks. Despite entering the postseason as modest favorites for the championship, the team struggled all postseason, taking six and seven games to win their first two series against the Atlanta Hawks and the Philadelphia 76ers, respectively (this being only the first time since 2018 that the Celtics took longer than four games to win a first round series, not counting 2021, in which they had lost in the first round), and nearly blowing a 2–1 lead in the latter series. Regardless, the Celtics advanced to the Eastern Conference finals for the fifth time in seven seasons. In this round, Boston faced their rivals the Miami Heat for the third time in four years, and quickly found themselves in trouble, going 0–3 down in the series, a position from which no team had ever advanced before. However, the Celtics remained resilient and became only the fourth team in NBA history, and first since the 2002–03 Portland Trail Blazers, to force a Game 7 from such a position when Derrick White made a dramatic buzzer-beating putback layup at the end of Game 6, the first buzzer-beater made by a team trailing and facing elimination since Michael Jordan's famous 1989 shot against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Despite hopes of becoming the first NBA team to overcome a 0–3 series deficit, Boston failed to make history in Game 7, collapsing in a 103–84 home loss, during which Jayson Tatum injured his ankle in the first minute of the game and ending their season just one win short of a return to the NBA Finals.

Draft

RoundPickPlayerPositionNationalityCollege253JD DavisonPGAlabama The Celtics owed their first-round pick (25th overall) to the San Antonio Spurs. The Celtics only owned their second-round pick.

Roster

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Standings

Division

Conference

Game log

Preseason

|-style="background:#cfc;" | 1 | October 2 | Charlotte | | Jaylen Brown (24) | Noah Vonleh (9) | Malcolm Brogdon (9) | TD Garden19,156 | 1–0 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 2 | October 5 | Toronto | | Jaylen Brown (23) | Jayson Tatum (10) | Malcolm Brogdon (9) | TD Garden19,156 | 1–1 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 3 | October 7 | @ Charlotte | | Jaylen Brown (19) | Noah Vonleh (13) | Payton Pritchard (7) | Greensboro Coliseum16,119 | 2–1 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 4 | October 14 | @ Toronto | | Brown, White (23) | Jayson Tatum (9) | Jayson Tatum (5) | Bell Centre21,900 | 2–2

Regular season

|-style="background:#cfc;" | 1 | October 18 | Philadelphia | | Brown, Tatum (35) | Jayson Tatum (12) | Marcus Smart (7) | TD Garden19,156 | 1–0 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 2 | October 21 | @ Miami | | Jayson Tatum (29) | White, G. Williams (7) | Jayson Tatum (4) | FTX Arena19,600 | 2–0 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 3 | October 22 | @ Orlando | | Jayson Tatum (40) | Jaylen Brown (9) | Marcus Smart (8) | Amway Center19,299 | 3–0 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 4 | October 24 | @ Chicago | | Jayson Tatum (26) | Jayson Tatum (8) | Marcus Smart (6) | United Center17,673 | 3–1 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 5 | October 28 | Cleveland | | Brown, Tatum (32) | Jaylen Brown (8) | Marcus Smart (7) | TD Garden19,156 | 3–2 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 6 | October 30 | Washington | | Jaylen Brown (24) | Jaylen Brown (10) | Marcus Smart (6) | TD Garden19,156 | 4–2

|-style="background:#fcc;" | 7 | November 2 | @ Cleveland | | Jaylen Brown (30) | Tatum, Horford (12) | Tatum, White (6) | Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse 19,432 | 4–3 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 8 | November 4 | Chicago | | Jayson Tatum (36) | Jayson Tatum (12) | Jayson Tatum (6) | TD Garden19,156 | 5–3 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 9 | November 5 | @ New York | | Jaylen Brown (30) | Noah Vonleh (7) | Marcus Smart (11) | Madison Square Garden19,812 | 6–3 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 10 | November 7 | @ Memphis | | Jayson Tatum (39) | Malcolm Brogdon (10) | Marcus Smart (11) | FedExForum17,371 | 7–3 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 11 | November 9 | Detroit | | Jayson Tatum (31) | Derrick White (8) | Marcus Smart (11) | TD Garden19,156 | 8–3 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 12 | November 11 | Denver | | Jayson Tatum (34) | Brown, Tatum (8) | Jaylen Brown (8) | TD Garden19,156 | 9–3 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 13 | November 12 | @ Detroit | | Jayson Tatum (43) | Tatum, G. Williams (10) | Marcus Smart (10) | Little Caesars Arena20,190 | 10–3 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 14 | November 14 | Oklahoma City | | Jayson Tatum (27) | Al Horford (11) | Marcus Smart (8) | TD Garden19,156 | 11–3 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 15 | November 16 | @ Atlanta | | Jaylen Brown (22) | Al Horford (11) | Derrick White (10) | State Farm Arena18,165 | 12–3 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 16 | November 18 | @ New Orleans | | Jaylen Brown (27) | Jaylen Brown (10) | Jayson Tatum (10) | Smoothie King Center17,828 | 13–3 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 17 | November 21 | @ Chicago | | Jayson Tatum (28) | Jayson Tatum (11) | Marcus Smart (8) | United Center20,786 | 13–4 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 18 | November 23 | Dallas | | Jayson Tatum (37) | Jayson Tatum (13) | Marcus Smart (9) | TD Garden19,156 | 14–4 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 19 | November 25 | Sacramento | | Jayson Tatum (30) | Jayson Tatum (8) | Horford, Smart (5) | TD Garden19,156 | 15–4 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 20 | November 27 | Washington | | Jaylen Brown (36) | Grant Williams (7) | Marcus Smart (7) | TD Garden19,156 | 16–4 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 21 | November 28 | Charlotte | | Jayson Tatum (35) | Luke Kornet (8) | Marcus Smart (15) | TD Garden19,156 | 17–4 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 22 | November 30 | Miami | | Jayson Tatum (49) | Jayson Tatum (11) | Marcus Smart (9) | TD Garden19,156 | 18–4

|-style="background:#fcc;" | 23 | December 2 | Miami | | Jaylen Brown (37) | Jaylen Brown (14) | Marcus Smart (9) | TD Garden19,156 | 18–5 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 24 | December 4 | @ Brooklyn | | Jaylen Brown (34) | Jayson Tatum (11) | Malcolm Brogdon (8) | Barclays Center18,043 | 19–5 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 25 | December 5 | @ Toronto | | Jayson Tatum (31) | Jayson Tatum (12) | Jaylen Brown (8) | Scotiabank Arena19,800 | 20–5 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 26 | December 7 | @ Phoenix | | Brown, Tatum (25) | Blake Griffin (9) | Smart, White (6) | Footprint Center17,071 | 21–5 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 27 | December 10 | @ Golden State | | Jaylen Brown (31) | Jaylen Brown (9) | Marcus Smart (5) | Chase Center18,064 | 21–6 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 28 | December 12 | @ L.A. Clippers | | Jaylen Brown (21) | Jayson Tatum (11) | Malcolm Brogdon (6) | Crypto.com Arena19,068 | 21–7 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 29 | December 13 | @ L.A. Lakers | | Jayson Tatum (44) | Jaylen Brown (15) | Brogdon, Smart, Tatum (6) | Crypto.com Arena18,661 | 22–7 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 30 | December 16 | Orlando | | Jayson Tatum (31) | Jayson Tatum (7) | Marcus Smart (8) | TD Garden19,156 | 22–8 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 31 | December 18 | Orlando | | Jaylen Brown (24) | Jaylen Brown (14) | Marcus Smart (7) | TD Garden19,156 | 22–9 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 32 | December 21 | Indiana | | Jayson Tatum (41) | Robert Williams III (12) | Malcolm Brogdon (7) | TD Garden19,156 | 22–10 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 33 | December 23 | Minnesota | | Jaylen Brown (36) | Al Horford (11) | Marcus Smart (10) | TD Garden19,156 | 23–10 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 34 | December 25 | Milwaukee | | Jayson Tatum (41) | Jayson Tatum (7) | Marcus Smart (8) | TD Garden19,156 | 24–10 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 35 | December 27 | Houston | | Jaylen Brown (39) | Robert Williams III (15) | Malcolm Brogdon (8) | TD Garden19,156 | 25–10 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 36 | December 29 | L.A. Clippers | | Brown, Tatum (29) | Jayson Tatum (11) | Marcus Smart (9) | TD Garden19,156 | 26–10

|-style="background:#fcc;" | 37 | January 1 | @ Denver | | Jaylen Brown (30) | Jaylen Brown (8) | Marcus Smart (7) | Ball Arena19,641 | 26–11 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 38 | January 3 | @ Oklahoma City | | Jaylen Brown (29) | Malcolm Brogdon (9) | Marcus Smart (8) | Paycom Center16,778 | 26–12 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 39 | January 5 | @ Dallas | | Jayson Tatum (29) | Jayson Tatum (14) | Jayson Tatum (10) | American Airlines Center20,413 | 27–12 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 40 | January 7 | @ San Antonio | | Jayson Tatum (34) | Robert Williams III (11) | Derrick White (11) | AT&T Center18,354 | 28–12 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 41 | January 9 | Chicago | | Jayson Tatum (32) | Tatum, G. Williams (8) | Jayson Tatum (7) | TD Garden19,156 | 29–12 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 42 | January 11 | New Orleans | | Jaylen Brown (41) | Jaylen Brown (12) | Derrick White (6) | TD Garden19,156 | 30–12 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 43 | January 12 | @ Brooklyn | | Jayson Tatum (20) | Jayson Tatum (11) | Marcus Smart (10) | Barclays Center18,125 | 31–12 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 44 | January 14 | @ Charlotte | | Jayson Tatum (33) | Robert Williams III (12) | Marcus Smart (12) | Spectrum Center19,608 | 32–12 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 45 | January 16 | @ Charlotte | | Jayson Tatum (51) | Tatum, G. Williams, R. Williams (9) | Derrick White (8) | Spectrum Center19,227 | 33–12 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 46 | January 19 | Golden State | | Jayson Tatum (34) | Jayson Tatum (19) | Jayson Tatum (6) | TD Garden19,156 | 34–12 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 47 | January 21 | @ Toronto | | Jaylen Brown (27) | Jaylen Brown (8) | Jaylen Brown (6) | Scotiabank Arena19,800 | 35–12 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 48 | January 23 | @ Orlando | | Brown, Tatum (26) | Jayson Tatum (6) | Jayson Tatum (7) | Amway Center19,196 | 35–13 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 49 | January 24 | @ Miami | | Jayson Tatum (31) | Jayson Tatum (14) | Jayson Tatum (7) | Miami-Dade Arena19,705 | 35–14 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 50 | January 26 | New York | | Jayson Tatum (35) | Jayson Tatum (14) | Malcolm Brogdon (6) | TD Garden19,156 | 35–15 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 51 | January 28 | L.A. Lakers | | Jaylen Brown (37) | Jayson Tatum (11) | Brogdon, Tatum (4) | TD Garden19,156 | 36–15

|-style="background:#cfc;" | 52 | February 1 | Brooklyn | | Jayson Tatum (31) | Derrick White (10) | Derrick White (5) | TD Garden19,156 | 37–15 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 53 | February 3 | Phoenix | | Jaylen Brown (27) | Al Horford (9) | Jayson Tatum (5) | TD Garden19,156 | 37–16 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 54 | February 6 | @ Detroit | | Jayson Tatum (34) | Robert Williams III (15) | Derrick White (7) | Little Caesars Arena17,933 | 38–16 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 55 | February 8 | Philadelphia | | Brogdon, White (19) | Hauser, Tatum, G. Williams (8) | Jayson Tatum (9) | TD Garden19,156 | 39–16 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 56 | February 10 | Charlotte | | Jayson Tatum (41) | Robert Williams III (16) | Derrick White (10) | TD Garden19,156 | 40–16 |-style="background:#cfc;" | 57 | February 12 | Memphis |