Isaiah Thomas on Being the Franchise Player for Celtics | Knuckleheads Podcast | Players' Tribune

[Music] how was it after you know what I'm saying like getting to going to Phoenix somewhere you wanted to be you thought they wanted to be how was it when you found out you getting traded to the Celtics so that was tough because in Phoenix I just signed a four-year deal I'm thinking exactly like I'm not thinking I'm getting traded the first year so come Allstar break around the trade deadline I just do the little skills challenge too I'm in the little skills challenge with my Phoenix Jersey young they and I'm going to be there at least the rest of the year we're in playoff race everything I think we was like the sixth or seventh seed at that point Goran dragic Demands a he Demands a trade so we already know at the trade deadline he's trying to get traded craziest thing I'm going to break down the whole story to you we're about to leave to Minnesota so in Phoenix we're on the team bus waiting for the trade deadline to go like waiting whatever 3:00 it's one of them cuz we know one player is about to dip he demanded a trade they're kind of beefing um so we wait he ends up getting traded getting traded to Miami so once we make that trade everybody's like okay this is the squad we got and the deadline just pass it's like a minute or two past the deadline my agent hits me before the deadline is like there's like maybe a 10% chance you might be in a deal but that's I don't think it's going to happen and once the the time went by I'm like oh I'm cool we on the back of the bus the whole team everybody's like oh it's good this is the team we rocking with the rest of the way I remember Brandon wri left- hand big he like it he look at his phone it you just got traded I like no I didn't he look he showed me the phone it's like on a little ESPN little clip traded to the Boston Celtics I'm thinking first off I'm thinking I'm finally on a playoff team I've been on a losing team for three years I'm finally on a playoff team Boston just traded Rondo like a month ago they don't got their big three like it it caught me by surprise I was hot crazy thing is first person who calls me the older Isaiah Thomas he like I know you probably emotional you got a lot of things going on right now but this is going to be the best movie of your career I'm not even thinking that yeah Z called me I'm like and he told me he's like that I'm telling you this is going to be the best thing that happened to your career at that point I'm not even seeing where he's coming from I'm like Boston it's cold I don't even own the cold at that time it's it's February I'm going to the I'm going to practice like this it's 80° I'm thinking about Phoenix andamento you need all that they rebill Mo they not that good at that point and it's cold so when he breaks that down to me I'm like yeah I mean I can see it but I don't know what they're thinking so Danny a calls me he's excited he's like man welcome to the squad we excited to get you we've been looking for a player like you we don't got that on this team so it was that was my first first time really being traded obviously the signing trade happened with the Phoenix HS but it was tough I didn't think it was going to be a good opportunity or good situation I thought it was going to be a good opportunity because they didn't really have any solidified players they was going through rebuild mode so I was thinking damn I'm going come in and play again but like it's not going to be winning basketball which I was trying to go towards that in my career I didn't know what to expect with Boston but obviously fast forward it was kind of one of the best situations for me and it was a um good situation because it was a team that wanted me for who I was and allowed me to be who I was and it was a team that I needed somebody to allow me to to to believe in me and who I was at being a 59 scoring guard which is basically unheard of in NBA so I did a training camp with Boston I ain't never get a chance to really get I got cut or whatever but uh the two months I was there being on a being in an organization like that when I done been to different organization seeing the banner in in The Practice Facility the arena like the aura of the Boston Celtics organization how did that feel and did you feel the same thing that I was feeling when yeah when I you feel that right when you walk in you see all the pictures are all the greats you see the banners it's a different energy in Boston like right like even when I used to play against Boston like it's cool you know the Arena's cold like you really a you really ain't tripping on playing against the Celtics like that especially at that time they wasn't as good but like when I got traded there and put on the Boston uniform it changed everything like you're expected to be great you're expected to win championships you see Bill Russell around you see Bill Walton rest in peace to all them you see all the greatness in Boston you feel it in the air you feel it it it's an energy changer like you it's like greatness in the air then don't piggy back don't don't like you got the Patriots over there that's winning Super Bowls you got the boss you got the Bruins over there winning Super Bowl like it's in the city to be great so like that feeling that definitely was a different feeling than when I was in Sacramento when I was in Phoenix and any other feeling I had around any other organization it was like it was like you got to be great now they're not satisfied with going to the first round they're not satisfied with having little regular season success they trying to put a banner up how was it for you when you started to like when you started getting busy over there and like how did how did that compare to like you say that fan base and the way that they recognize they they players and stars like how did that feel walking around that type of city as opposed to being in Sacramento and Phoenix and everything else like when you started to win and y'all started to win no no nothing against those other franchises either like there's no comparison I bet I bet the Knicks is comparison like you know how you go a away game and you you was on the Knicks you know how you go to the way game is all blue and orange in there you go to a Boston game I mean you go to a game a way game it's all green in there like it's the feeling playing for the Celtics is amazing like and then the love you get the love is like the love that I get to this day you would think I won a championship there you would think I had a 10year career there like you would think my my jersey is retired in them stands yeah they so the love that they give me and the love that I got there from day one like you said it's just different like obviously I put my career on the line for those guys and the city seen that so like I got real genuine love for B and I think it's the same for sure that 2016 17 season you averaged 28 you got the longest consecutive 20 20o games in 43 y was the number one seed I go all the way to the to the uh conference find you tied your career how that year allstar game you know Reserve like just explain like that that season was crazy because the season before I I think I averaged like 22 and a half like I had a good year that was my first Allstar year that's when I started to realize like I'm one of them players like I'm I'm one of them players I started to visualize all that stuff I started to connect with the great players that's that's at the time where I started to build a relationship with Kobe Bryant build a friendship with Tom Brady Super close with Floyd Mayweather so like I was trying to surround myself with greatness like I seen where my career was going Alan Iris was a big mentor of mine so like that summer when I really chopped it up with AI and he was like man you're just like me you're a killer that changed everything for me like mentally I went to a different level I remember documenting one thing I'm like man Allan I saying average for a career 26 points a game like that season I just had is not good enough like I got to do a little more I remember going into it I like my goal I wrote I I write down my goals every year my goal is to average 25 that year they gave me the opport that was the first year in my career I didn't have to look over my shoulder like the first year that you had to look at the coach coming down I didn't have to do anything like they gave me the green light I was the franchise guy it it just reminded me of high school like where I knew I was going to get 30 to 35 every night like mentally I figured the game out so I like when you said earlier like two or three extra shots going to get you two six to eight extra points like I figured the game out to a t so when I was able to have that opportunity that year every night I knew I was getting 30 yeah I knew it cuz I just figured it out I figured the game out inside and out I watched film every day I prepared I prepared on some kobe [ __ ] like I really did and he was able to Mentor me and like really mow me all year like I used to call Kobe at night like what do I do when they're defending me like this we used to watch film like really like he used to really take his time and watch film with me and it was like my skills were all always there my mental just took it to a different level and that's how I was able to have that success and obviously my my teammates allowed me to be who I was my coaching staff Brad Stevens put me in position to be who I was and they embraced that like like I said earlier when I got traded to Boston it was a team that needed a guy like me and I needed a team to give me a chance like that and they did and every year I just got a little better every year I was just a little more paranoid to to get closer to Greatness when I went into that year my goal was to average 25 and I just kept exceeding that and when I seen that success no disrespected anybody else that I played against that year but no other guard would even look me in my eye cuz they knew what it was like it didn't matter it didn't matter who it was the best of the best they know you was coming they knew I was coming not saying I was going to win that battle that night but they knew a 30 piece was coming yeah for sure they did and I seen it and I felt it and I know that type of that's why like I be telling young guys to this day like if you ever get that opportunity to be in that space and have the opportunity to be a franchise guy stay in that space as long as you can cuz that [ __ ] go like this [Music]