The Celtics have gone from a team desperately in search of success to one that must now combat complacency. The season after winning the NBA title, the biggest issue for the players -- especially the Big Three -- is how badly they want to do it again.
As they begin training camp, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen insist they aren't satisfied. "Once you get a taste of it, you don't want to let it go," Pierce said. "We saw the reaction from the fans and our peers around the league all summer. It's a feeling that you don't want to go away.
"We talked about enjoying having short summers. That's what it's all about. The shorter the summer, the longer your season is. I'm definitely motivated every time I step on the court to have an opportunity to play this game. That's what I play the game for, to win a championship."
The players understand the questions, but they feel very confident that their desire remains.
"A lot of the questions I've been getting asked lately is if we're still hungry," Garnett said. "But like Paul said, when you taste something like that, you want to continue that. You want to make sure that taste stays there."
The flavor was still strong when the club convened on its own for informal workouts almost a month before camp.
"For myself, I don't know how to do it any other way," Allen said. "When we step on the court, it's business as usual. Everybody knows pretty much what their job is. When we start, it's a certain level of commitment that we know we have to give. None of us want any less."
"You don't get to a level and then take a step backwards," Garnett added. "One thing about this group that we have, we're very competitive. Obviously this year's different."
