The Celtics championship parade was perfect chaos

BOSTON — For sixteen years, the Celtics relentlessly — and publicly — chased Banner 18, so much so that “It’s All About 18” became the official team mantra in ‘09.

After years and years of falling short — most recently in the 2022 Finals and the 2023 Eastern Conference Finals — the Celtics finally got the chance to take to the streets and celebrate winning the NBA Championship.

Needless to say, the city of Boston was ready for the festivities, as were the players. By 8 am, thousands of fans swarmed around TD Garden in hopes of catching a first glimpse of the duckboats, as well the early arrival of players.

“I’m ready for the greatest day of my life, and that includes my wedding and the birth of my son,” one raucous fan told me, adding he’d begun camping out on Causeway Street at 6 am.

A private, pre-parade celebration at TD Garden began at 10 am, headlined by Mayor Michele Wu and Governor Maura Healey praising the Celtics for delivering a championship to the city of Boston. Then, one by one, players stepped onto the parquet, decked out in their parade outfits.

NBC Sports Boston’s Brian Scalabrine moderated a brief conversation with the recently-crowned champions in front of media, family and friends. He asked Jaylen Brown if he knew why people claim the Celtics had an easy path even though most chose the Celtics.

“Make it make sense, Scal,” Brown said with a grin. “I ain’t got to comment — we here!”

Jrue Holiday praised the role players for their contributions to the team, while Al Horford said he never minded coming off the bench and that for him, it was always all about winning.

Jayson Tatum still hadn’t processed the new reality: “It’s been unreal. Still doesn’t seem true.”

Then, it was duckboat time; each duckboat had its own name and list of attendees, made up of players, their families, friends, and various members of the organization.

Al Horford was the first player in line, and his was boat was brimming with family members. Derrick White and Svi Mykhailiuk shared a boat, which was unlikely to be a coincidence, given that Mykhailiuk has previously told CelticsBlog that White was his best friend on the team.

Jayson Tatum’s included the Larry O’Brien trophy, the 2024 championship banner, as well as Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck, assistant coach Amile Jefferson, his trainer Nick Sang, and Celtics videographer Bred Hampton, among others.

Jaylen Brown, who followed shortly after Tatum, was joined by co-owner Steve Pagliuca and had his Finals MVP trophy in hand for most of the ride. Brown and Pagliuca have partnered on a number of social justice initiatives, most recently jointly lobbying in favor of Raise the Age legislation in Massachusetts, which proposes prosecuting 18, 19, and 20 year olds as juveniles instead of adults.

Well over one million fans were expected to be in attendance.

Here are five things to know about the championship parade:

1. Jayson Tatum quite literally did not put the Larry O’Brien trophy down

It’s safe to say that Tatum is enjoying his first week as an NBA champion. From the moment he walked into the arena on Friday morning, he raised the championship trophy over his head, and continued to do so for the rest of the day.

Joe Mazzulla had previously spent most of Thursday with the trophy visiting the Boys and Girls Club and various restaurants in Boston, but on Friday, it was all Tatum.

2. Joe Mazzulla was the most hyped up person in the city of Boston

Joe Mazzulla has meant business all year, and even in his post-Game 5 interview, he opted not to get too sappy, reflective, or emotional. But the championship parade brought out a different side of Mazzulla, who engaged with Bostonians, jumped off the bus numerous times, splashed fans with beer, signed autographs, and fully embraced the moment.

Mazzulla high-fived every fan in his path, screamed, cheered, and expressed unadulterated joy.

Then, there was this moment.

3. Jaylen Brown was giddy out of his mind

It’s unusual to find Jaylen Brown smiling during media availabilities — but since winning the championship and being awarded Finals MVP on Monday night, Brown has been beaming every time he’s been spotted.

Fittingly, Brown donned a “State Your Source” shirt, a reference to ESPN’S Stephen A. Smith previously stating that sources told him Brown wasn’t marketable. After winning the Eastern Conference Finals MVP and Finals MVP, Brown circled back to his previous tweet asking Smith to state his source.

Brown enjoyed having the final world and danced to “MVP” chants, threw basketballs into the crowd, and made heart gestures to onlooking fans all afternoon.

4. Luke Kornet was the MVP

It shouldn’t have come as a surprise, but Luke Kornet was the MVP of the parade, according to most of the fans CelticsBlog spoke to (13 of the 15 fans polled said Kornet, two said Jaylen Brown).

Ahead of the parade, Kornet told NBC Sports Boston’s Abby Chin he planned on making the most of the experience, and interacting with as many people as possible.

“I plan to try and make eye contact with every single person along the parade route, just so I can have an intimate moment of stating my gratitude,” Kornet said.

Needless to say, he stuck to his word.

Here’s just a couple of quintessential moments from the Banner 18 celebration.

5. The players were bewildered at the love from the fans

Jayson Tatum turned to Instagram a few hours after the parade concluded to thank the city for the support, writing “Boston, I love you.”

Xavier Tillman Sr., who was beaming and thanking fans for the entire route, reflected on the experience with awe in a conversation with WBZ’s Dan Roche.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen so much love from fans in my life, so that was awesome,” Xavier Tillman said “I can see why people want to repeat, why they want to win as many championships as possible once they get their first one, because that experience from the fans makes it everything.”