The Boston Celtics just had a wildly successful season from a basketball perspective, but that doesn’t necessarily mean the organization loaded its pockets in the process.
According to a report, the team “barely broke even” during its 2023-24 championship season.
“The team barely broke even last season during its championship run, sources said,” wrote Josh Kosman and Brian Lewis of the New York Post.
To capture their 18th title in franchise history, the Celtics assembled a very expensive roster, with players like Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Kristaps Porzingis, Jrue Holiday and Derrick White accounting for a hefty portion of the team’s payroll.
In the coming years, the Celtics have even more total money committed to those players.
In the 2024-25 season, each of the five aforementioned players will make at least $20 million, with Brown leading the way at nearly $50 million.
In the 2025-26 season, each of those five players will make at least $28 million, with Brown and Tatum each earning well over $50 million.
“It (the team) is expected to lose roughly $80 million because of luxury tax fines for being over the salary cap for the upcoming season that tips off next month, a source close to the sale process said,” wrote Kosman and Lewis.
“That figure likely will rise significantly in the 2025-26 season when harsher salary cap fines kick in.
“The 11 players under contract — including stars Jayson Tatum, who got the NBA’s richest ever contract this summer, and Jrue Holiday, who also got a new deal, are due $225 million – putting the team on the hook for a $280 million luxury tax penalty, according to ESPN.”
A situation like the one at hand sparks an interesting philosophical conversation as to whether a sports franchise’s primary goal is to win championships or to make money. Ultimately, the answer to that question may vary depending on who in an organization is being asked.
The Celtics are currently up for sale, so their financial battles will soon be the problem of a new majority ownership group. The good news for whoever purchases the franchise is that the squad is in position to be one of the best teams in the NBA for years to come.
Boston was dominant during its run to the 2024 NBA title, losing just three games during the playoffs and never needing more than five games to win any series. With the team set to look very similar in the 2024-25 season, the Celtics will remain championship contenders, and that could be the case for a long time.
As long as the Celtics are winning, fans of the team likely don’t care about the finances that are going on behind the scenes — but it’s certainly an interesting storyline to keep in mind on the business side of things.
