The NBA Playoffs are known for the sheer amount of energy and electric moments that come along with them. Home crowds are more juiced than ever with fans hoping to see their team raise the Larry O’Brien trophy in June.
Boston, of course, is no different. TD Garden is home to one of the loudest, most energized crowds in the league and there’s no better way to get them engaged than nailing all of the pregame in-arena festivities.
That starts with the playoff hype video.
Before I start, I want to shout out Dan Greenberg of Barstool Sports, who usually puts together a compilation of fan-made hype videos before the playoffs. That is a man that knows ball and understands the value of a good montage.
Whether you want to point to the video that plays as the seconds tick down during warmups or the one that rolls before the Celtics starters are introduced, the production team has to nail it.
This piece of content can make or break a playoff run.
Just take a look at last season’s.
Now, I’m not sure if the team has ever embarrassed me to a larger degree. Say what you want about the music choice, highlight packages, and whatnot. But, it is completely shameful that the production team thought it was a good idea to roll out a bunch of Larry O’Brien Trophies that this group hadn’t won.
The Cs used this video from the beginning of the season on, so the trophies weren’t an addition to add some juice for the playoffs.
Who thought this was a good idea????
I understand the premise. It felt like they were so close to finishing the job in 2022 and they entered last season with their eyes set on Banner 18 as the exclusive goal. That doesn’t mean having them stand with trophies they didn’t win.
Just look what the fumble here did to this team throughout the playoffs. They had a home record of 5-6, including a 3-5 record after the first round. Do we really think that happens if they roll out an absolute hoss of a hype video like 2008’s?
Not a shot.
There’s a reason why that championship team only lost one game at the Garden throughout the entire run to Banner 17.
It would be pretty unfair to hold the production team to a standard where we expect them to top what you just watched above. However, I don’t think anyone would be mad if they did a reboot (as they say out in Hollywood) and remade it featuring this season’s roster.
The music rocks, the quotes rock, and of course the screams from Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce are enough to make me want to run out there and suit up for the Cs.
Well Sam, oh enlightened one, what would you do for the video?
I’m glad you asked.
Let’s take a look at what our boys have been rolling with all year.
Right off the bat, you can tell that they learned from last season. Not a hint of any sort of trophy throughout the thing. Great work.
As for the actual quality of the montage, it’s fine. We’re looking at some pretty standard stuff here. Media Day video, some highlights spliced in, with a super-cool pyramid as the centerpiece.
If you ask me, the 2023-24 Celtics are worthy of something greater.
Option No. 1: Literally remake the 2008 video, no one would complain.
Option No. 2: Make something new, but make it mean something.
One thing that is completely absent in the 2023-24 pregame video is any sort of storytelling. This team is special. They’ve put together the best regular season in 16 years, and they did it all while integrating new stars into the roster.
How about we throw in some news clippings of Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday being traded to Boston? This would be a great way to highlight the major changes that had to be made after the shortcomings of last spring.
This video below from NBC Sports Boston does an excellent job of doing just that. You get a full recap of what had to be sacrificed in order for the Cs to be where they are.
What I’m about to point at next is a MUST-INCLUDE piece of media. If the production team leaves this out, then the entire thing is a failure and I want to disown the hype video.
They have to include Mike Gorman ending his farewell ceremony by telling the team to go and win the title.
“To the team, I just want to say go win this thing, will you please? Just go win it.”
A lot of tears in this building as Mike Gorman closes his halftime farewell with the perfect final line.
“To the team, I just want to say: go win this thing.” pic.twitter.com/hrZS15KVaV
— Noa Dalzell (@NoaDalzellNBA) April 14, 2024
The Celtics have the actual feed of this saved somewhere and can easily end the video with Gorman issuing the challenge to this group, the same way that a father who expects more of his brilliant child would do it.
It was an absolute mic (Mike) drop of a moment and it needs to be used to its full potential.
There would be no better way to tip off Game 1 against either the Miami Heat or Chicago Bulls than a rewind on this team’s journey followed by Gorman essentially telling them to cut the crap.
Bonus: Tip-off song
I’ll keep this section pretty short. The Celtics need to get back to playing “Welcome to the Jungle” by Guns N’ Roses before tip off. It’s a classic. Every time I hear the song, I think of KG beating his chest to pump up the crowd.
If you want to get creative, roll out the version that starts with Kevin James kicking off the Daytona 500 — the only edit I could find was audio only.
