The Boston Celtics are officially NBA champions.
It’s really no surprise, either. They have one of the most complete rosters maybe ever, they dominated the regular season, and they cruised their way to the Finals. Anybody who dared step in Boston’s way was crushed by endless three-point barrages and a suffocating defense.
This team will go down in history, and so will many of its players. Jayson Tatum, the head of the snake. Jaylen Brown, the trusty second star (and the Finals MVP). Derrick White, the heart and soul. Jrue Holiday, the ultimate winner. Al Horford, the ageless wonder. Kristaps Porzingis, the cherry on top of this modern superteam.
Of course, though, as the years go on, some parts of this team’s run will be forgotten. Sam Hauser’s admirable defensive effort. Luke Kornet’s contests. Joe Mazzulla’s unintentionally hilarious post game interviews.
Another guy who will be forgotten is Xavier Tillman. He barely played in the playoffs as a whole, but after Kristaps Porzingis got hurt, he found his way into the rotation in the Finals. And when he did, he made his mark. So before he gets washed into the sands of time, let’s give Tillman the credit he deserves.
Tillman joined the Celtics at the 2024 trade deadline in a largely insignificant deal. He was the biggest name involved, and he’s nothing more than a solid bench player. Real ball knowers saw, though, that he had a chance to be a real contributor for Boston. Who would have thought that idea would be actualized on basketball’s greatest stage?
Despite being on a team that features multiple of the league’s premier defenders, Tillman was as good as anybody on the court defensively when he got to play. Switchability/mobility is a trendy trait for big men, and Tillman has it. He was matched up with pretty much every Maverick at some point and held his own with all of them. Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving, Jaden Hardy… it didn’t matter who, Tillman was locking up all of them. He walled off drives and forced tough angles at the rim. His rare combination of size, strength, and lateral quickness are what made that defense possible.
Tillman’s defense is almost eerily reminiscent of Al Horford’s. Throughout the past few playoffs, Horford has proven to be capable of covering anyone from Giannis Antetokounmpo to Steph Curry. With the veteran entering the twilight of his career, it’s very possible that Tillman could become his successor as Boston’s switchknife big man.
Tillman’s impact shows up in the advanced stats. While slightly skewed due to garbage time, he had a plus/minus of +18.4 per 100 possessions while on the court in the playoffs (For those unfamiliar with +/-, that means the Celtics outscored opponents by 18.4 points per 100 possessions when Tillman was on the court). That said, though, his regular counting stats are paltry. In 8.6 minutes a night in the playoffs, he posted 1.5 points and 1.8 rebounds per game on 62.5% shooting. In the Finals, those numbers jumped up to 3.0 points and 2.5 rebounds on 66.7% shooting in 9.3 minutes per game.
All stats aside, though, just watching the games makes it clear that Tillman was a positive presence on the hardwood. His beyond-the-box-score value is a reminder that every player on a team matters, even when you might not realize it. Basketball is a true team sport, and it’s beautiful. Some guys score 30 points a night and some guys spend games cheering from the bench, but all of them are important to a winning basketball team. Xavier Tillman deserves his credit. Everyone else on the Celtics deserves their credit. So, when you’re talking about Boston’s championship, or any champion, don’t forget to give a shout to some of the unheralded guys. They matter too.
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