Havlicek Stole the Pod NBA Basketball Podcast

As we approach the end of the 2025-26 regular season, the NCAA tournament is heating up. There, we will get our best glimpse yet of most of the incoming cohort of 2026 NBA Draft, and who the next members of the Celtics organization might be.

The league is also elevating their assault on the tendency of teams to make their play worse to get said players after a recent Board of Governors meeting laid out a number of routes the NBA could take to lessen tanking. To get a read on who Boston ought to consider drafting and what the league should (not?) do to fix tanking, the hosts of "Havlicek Stole the Pod" sat down with USA TODAY draft guru Bryan Kalbrosky to talk through a very future-focused episode.

We also cover some important health news in the context of the Celtics stretch run and more, so be sure to tune in.

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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The Boston Celtics are currently well past the three-fourths mark of the 2025-26 NBA regular season. And with that point in time having been arrived at, we are seeing an uptick in talk about the full-season awards that various Execs, coaches, and players from around the league are in the running for.

There are a handful of awards that a member of the Celtics organization have a shot at, from Jaylen Brown being in the hunt for this year's Most Valuable Player award to Joe Mazzulla being a frontrunner for Coach of the Year and Boston President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens Executive of the Year. And there are a host of awards that ought to exist, yet for some reason do not. To thread the needs of all the above, the hosts of "Havlicek Stole the Pod" sat down with CelticsBlog's Ian Inangelo, diving deep into the award races, both real and made up.

We also get caught up on a busy week of news, so be sure to tune in to this week's episode.

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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Derrick White has carved out a critical role with the Boston Celtics on the court since being dealt to the team in 2022. And he has also become an integral part of the greater Celtics community off the court, from his Curbside Care charity events to his beloved Sam Adams commercials for their Derrick White Ale. And the Colorado native has also had a privileged view on the rehab and return of his star teammate Jayson Tatum.

The University of Colorado - Boulder alum sat down this week to talk to "Havlicek Stole the Pod" about all of the above, as well as his own "White Noise" podcast, his preternatural defense this season, and a new Sam Adams ad campaign among several other topics in this wide-ranging interview.

We also get caught up on how Tatum has been doing in his return from injury, what the Nikola Vucevic injury means for Boston, and more – so be sure to tune in to this special episode.

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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With a certain St. Louis native having his injury report status changed from "out" to "questionable," the world of Boston Celtics (and NBA) fandom just kicked into overdrive. How will he change the Celtics season to date, where will he fit into this version of the team, and how should our expectations change are just a few of the relevant questions in need of some answers.

But we can also turn back the clock to talk about Hall of Fame Celtics legend Larry Bird's origin story in 'Heartland: A Forgotten Place, an Impossible Dream, and the Miracle of Larry Bird,' a new account of the years that basketball truly grabbed a hold of the Hick from French Lick and didn't let go – to all our benefit. On this week's episode of "Havlicek Stole the Pod", your hosts address the likely imminent return of Tatum and what that means for Boston before we take a closer look at the new Bird tome with author Keith O'Brien.

Make sure you tune in for one of the most packed episodes we have put out so far this season!

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Jayson Tatum is playing 5-on-5 basketball again with the Boston Celtics, and fans of the team can almost feel his return to the court this season. But such a return is still, even now, not certain – nor is what will happen to the Celtics when he does. The surprise success of Boston in his absence (and that of Al Horford, Luke Kornet, Jrue Holiday, and Kristaps Porzingis, while we're at it) might be the story of the season in the NBA.

But how the Celtics respond to Tatum's return could very well be the story of the decade depending on how it pans out, good or bad. What can we expect from the St. Louis native when he does start playing again? How will Boston reintegrate the Duke alum into what has been a play style very different from what he has grown used to? How will Tatum and his costar on the wing Jaylen Brown share the load? And most importantly, could this team win it all with Taco Jay playing for them again?

To assess the likely imminent return of Tatum to the Celtics, the hosts of "Havlicek Stole the Pod" linked up with Ringer reporter and Real Ones cohost Howard Beck. We cover all the angles of JT's return from injury, get caught up on all the Celtics news of the week, and even check in on the state of the Los Angeles Lakers - Celtics rivalry. Check it out!

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.