On Wednesday, Oct. 22, the Boston Celtics will get their 2025-26 NBA season underway against the Philadelphia 76ers. Joe Mazzulla’s roster will be without Jayson Tatum for most, if not all, of the season. As such, Mazzulla is expected to implement a different brand of basketball, as we saw throughout the team’s four preseason games, where they went 3-1, including an impressive win over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Celtics will be a gritty team, as they look to bridge the talent gap with hard-nosed play and up-tempo offense. At times, it will look messy, but it’s that controlled chaos that may lead the Celtics to become a difficult opponent for teams around the NBA. Brad Stevens has constructed a roster with plenty of size, length and athleticism and that could allow Mazzulla to have his team jumping passing lanes and leaking out in transition as they look to gain extra possessions.

During a recent episode of the “Hoops Tonight” podcast, host Jason Timpf shared his thoughts on how the Tatum-less Celtics will fare in the upcoming season. Timpf also touched on Boston’s win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday, Oct. 15, which was the final matchup of the Celtics’ preseason schedule. He then finished off by discussing whether the Celtics will be among the better teams in the Eastern Conference.

You can watch the full episode by clicking on the embedded video above.

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