>> FANS! NOW FOR THE PRESENTATION OF THE 2024 NBA EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS. TROPHIES. PLEASE WELCOME ESPN'S LISA SALTERS. >> THANK YOU. HERE TO PRESENT THE BOB COUSY TROPHY TO THE EASTERN CONFERENCE CHAMPION BOSTON CELTICS IS ANOTHER CELTICS LEGEND, TWO TIME CHAMPION AND THE NBA FINALS MVP. CEDRIC MAXWELL. >> GIRL, THIS IS HOW IT'S DONE. >> MAN. >> AWAKE. >> FOUR TIME AS EASTERN CONFERENCE CHAMPION FOR THIS TEAM. FOR YOU. SECOND TIME IN THE LAST THREE YEARS. JUST WHAT'S BEEN MOST SATISFYING, THOUGH, ABOUT THIS RUN? >> WELL, ALL I CAN THINK ABOUT RIGHT NOW IS WE LOST A GREAT CELTIC TEAMMATE, BILL WALTON, ONE OF THE GREATEST CELTICS OF ALL TIME. THIS IS DEDICATED TO BILL. THESE GUYS ARE NOT SATISFIED WITH THIS TROPHY. WE WANT TO GO ONE MORE. BUT CREDIT TO THE PACERS. GREAT ORGANIZATION GREAT FANS GREAT PLAYERS. CONGRATULATIONS PACERS ON A GOOD SEASON. HERE WE GO. CELTICS WITH THIS TEAM. >> THIS TEAM HAS BEEN GOOD FOR SEVERAL YEARS. BUT AFTER COMING UP SHORT LAST YEAR YOU SAID YOU FELT YOU NEEDED TO SHAKE THINGS UP A LITTLE BIT. HOW DID ALL OF THE MOVES THAT YOU MADE, HOW DID IT HELP GET YOU BACK HERE? >> WELL, CREDIT TO BRAD STEVENS FOR BRINGING IN SOME GREAT PLAYERS. WE LOST SOME GREAT GUYS AS WELL. THIS WHOLE TEAM IS A TEAM, A TEAM THE WAY THE CELTICS ARE SUPPOSED TO PLAY THEIR TRUE CELTICS. AND ON TO THE NEXT ROUND. CONGRATULATIONS TO YOU LISA. >> LET'S HEAR FROM YOUR HEAD COACH JOE. GO, GO GO. >> HEY, JOE. >> JOE. EXPECTATIONS HAVE BEEN HIGH ALL SEASON, AND YOU'VE BEEN ABLE TO. YOU'VE JUST STRESSED ALL YEAR THAT TO STAY EVEN KEELED. JUST HOW HAVE YOU BEEN ABLE TO DO THAT? FOR THE TEAM, FOR YOURSELF AND YET STILL GET THE JOB DONE? >> I MEAN, LOOK AT ALL THE LOOK AT ALL THE TALENT, LOOK AT THE PLAYERS THAT WE HAVE. IT'S REALLY ALL ABOUT THEM. THEY LET US COACH THEM. THEY ALLOW US TO PUSH THEM. THEY LISTEN TO US AND THEY SET THE TEMPERATURE OF THE ORGANIZATION EVERY SINGLE DAY. AND SO IT'S A CREDIT TO THE OWNERSHIP, TO CREDIT TO BRAD. AND AS A COACH, THE GREATEST GIFT YOU COULD HAVE IS A GROUP OF GUYS THAT TRUST YOU AND THAT ALLOW YOU TO COACH THEM. AND YOU GUYS GIVE THAT TO US EVERY DAY. SO I APPRECIATE THAT. >> AND YOU'VE SAID THAT THE NBA IS ALL ABOUT TIMING. YEAH. WHY IS THIS THE RIGHT TIME FOR THIS GROUP. >> IT'S JUST WHERE GOD HAS US RIGHT NOW. AND YOU KNOW, WE'RE ALL WE'RE EXACTLY WHERE WE'RE SUPPOSED TO BE. AND RIGHT NOW EVERYONE'S MINDSET IS ON HELPING EACH OTHER AND WINNING. AND THERE'S NOTHING MORE IMPORTANT THAN THAT. >> THANK YOU JOE. CONGRATULATIONS TO YOU. NOW, THE EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS MOST VALUABLE PLAYER TROPHY IS APTLY NAMED AFTER ONE OF THE GREATEST PLAYERS IN NBA HISTORY, LARRY BIRD, TO DO THE HONORS OF PRESENTING THAT AWARD, LET'S WELCOME BACK LARRY BIRD'S FORMER TEAMMATE CEDRIC MAXWELL. >> HOW ABOUT THEM CELTICS? >> THAT'S WHAT I'M GOING. WELL IT'S NOW IT IS MY HONOR AND IT'S MY PRIVILEGE. JAYLEN BROWN BROWN . >> JAYLEN. JUST WHAT'S IT MEAN TO YOU TO BE HOLDING THAT TROPHY RIGHT NOW, ALL PRAISE TO THE MOST HIGH, WE WAS IN THIS BUILDING NOT TOO LONG AGO. WE WAS GETTING BOOS. THANKFUL TO GOD TO BE HERE. I APPRECIATE EVERYTHING, MAN. AND, LET'S GET SOME MORE. >> JAYLEN, I REMEMBER THE FIRST PLAYOFF GAME OF THIS POSTSEASON. >> JUST HEARING YOU GUYS SAYING WE'RE BACK. WE'RE BACK. JUST WHAT HAS THE WAIT BEEN LIKE THE OFF SEASON THE THIS SEASON THE REGULAR SEASON. WHAT'S THE WAIT THE WORK BEEN LIKE TO GET BACK HERE GOING TO THE NBA FINALS, IT'S BEEN NOTHING BUT A GRIND. WE HAVEN'T SKIPPED NO STEPS ALL SEASON. WE GOT A BUNCH OF GREAT GUYS IN THIS LOCKER ROOM, A BUNCH OF TOUGH GUYS. OUR COACHING STAFF HAS BEEN GREAT, FRONT OFFICE HAS BEEN GREAT, AND NOW WE WANT TO TAKE IT TO THE NEXT STEP. >> THANK YOU JAYLEN. CONGRATULATIONS TO YOU. LET'S HEAR FROM SOME OF YOUR TEAMMATES. LET'S SEE WHO WE GOT. >> WHERE'S JASON. WHERE'S JASON. COME ON JASON COME ON JASON COME ON OVER HERE. >> JUST YOU KNOW THE EXPECTATIONS JASON. FOR THIS TEAM. THEY'VE BEEN HIGH ALL YEAR LONG. BUT YOU GUYS HAVE SAID ALL YEAR LONG THAT THE EXPECTATIONS ARE THE SAME. BUT WE'RE A DIFFERENT TEAM. JUST WHAT MAKES THIS TEAM SPECIAL? >> WELL, EXPERIENCE. WE NEVER SAY DIE, YOU KNOW, THESE ARE SOME TOUGH GAMES THAT WE HAD TO PLAY IN, WE ALWAYS FIND A WAY TO FIGURE IT OUT. IT'S DIFFERENT GUYS. EVERY SINGLE NIGHT, AND, YOU KNOW, WE SACRIFICE IN ORDER TO REACH OUR ULTIMATE GOAL. >> AND YOU GUYS HAVE ALWAYS TALKED ABOUT NAVIGATING EMOTIONS THROUGHOUT THE PLAYOFFS. JUST HOW HAVE YOU THERE HAVE BEEN SO MANY EMOTIONAL MOMENTS, IN THIS SERIES ALONE, JUST HOW HAVE YOU BEEN ABLE TO NAVIGATE THE EMOTIONS OF A PLAYOFF RUN, I THINK JUST LEARNING THROUGH EXPERIENCE, THE PLAYOFFS PRESENT. IT'S LIKE AN EMOTIONAL ROLLER COASTER, THE TEAM THAT CAN STAY EVEN KEELED AND POISE THE WHOLE TIME IS, YOU KNOW, PROBABLY GOING TO. >> WELL, CONGRATULATIONS TO YOU. APPRECIATE IT ALL RIGHT. >> HOW ABOUT, HOW ABOUT JRUE HOLIDAY. WHERE'S JRUE HOLIDAY. >> WHERE'S JRUE. >> WHERE'S JRUE. JRUE. JRUE DREW YOU WERE BROUGHT TO BOSTON TO HELP THIS TEAM GET VERY CUTE. YOU WERE BROUGHT TO BOSTON TO HELP THIS TEAM GET RIGHT BACK HERE. JUST WHAT DID YOU ENVISION THAT THIS JOURNEY WAS GOING TO BE LIKE, YOU KNOW I DON'T KNOW, THIS IS A GREAT TEAM, MAN. I THINK GOING THROUGH EVERYTHING THAT WE WENT THROUGH, GOING THROUGH SOME INJURIES AND THEN MAKING IT HOW WE DID, IT'S BEEN AN AWESOME JOURNEY. YOU'VE SAID THAT YOU'VE BEEN THE ULTIMATE X FACTOR FOR THIS TEAM THROUGHOUT THE REGULAR SEASON, THROUGHOUT THE PLAYOFFS. >> AND YOU'VE SAID THAT YOU COME INTO EACH GAME NOT KNOWING REALLY WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO BE NEEDED TO DO, BUT THAT THAT HAS BEEN FUN. IT'S BEEN FREEING. IT'S BROUGHT YOU SO MUCH JOY, HOW IS THAT, MAN? >> IT'S JUST HELPED ME BUILD MY GAME. SOME DAYS I MIGHT SCORE. SOME DAYS I MIGHT REBOUND, SOME DAYS I MIGHT ASSIST, AND MOST DAYS I'M GOING TO DEFEND. SO JUST ELEVATES MY GAME. AND THEN MY TEAMMATES REALLY MAKE IT REALLY EASY THOUGH. I GOT THE I GOT THE BEST TEAMMATES IN THE LEAGUE, SO MANY VERSATILE PLAYERS. I I LITERALLY GOT THE BEST TEAMMATES. SO THEY MAKE IT EASY FOR ME. CONGRATULATIONS TO YOU DREW. >> THANK YOU. AND HOW ABOUT AL HORFORD GOING BACK TO THE NBA FINALS. AL. YOU'RE GETTING ANOTHER SHOT AT IT. YOU'RE GETTING ANOTHER SHOT AT IT. YOU'VE ARGUABLY MADE THE BIGGEST SACRIFICE FOR THIS TEAM. YOU SAID IT WASN'T REALLY A SACRIFICE. YOU WERE JUST DOING WHATEVER IT TOOK TO GET THE TEAM TO WHERE IT NEEDED TO GO. WHY HAS IT ALL BEEN WORTH IT? >> MAN, GLORY TO THE LORD AND I'M JUST GRATEFUL TO BE IN THIS POSITION. AND IT'S NOT A SACRIFICE AT ALL. THIS IS A SPECIAL GROUP AND I'M JUST VERY HAPPY TO BE IN THIS POSITION. >> JUST HOW HUNGRY ARE YOU TO FINALLY GET THAT TITLE? STARVING. >> STARVING. WE READY FOR IT? WE CAN'T WAIT. >> CONGRATULATIONS. WE'LL SEE YOU IN THE FINALS, AL. THANK YOU . CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF YOU. EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS MVP JAYLEN BROWN AND TO THE 2024 EASTERN CONFERENCE CHAMPION BOSTON CELTICS