But according to U.S. team coach Steve Kerr, that's simply not the case.
“I haven't said a word,” Kerr said at practice Thursday. “They don't have to be told anything.”
Jayson Tatum, July Holiday and Derrick White are hardly boasters, despite making up a quarter of the U.S. national team. This is Holiday's second title and Tatum and White's first, but it hasn't boosted their confidence.
“There's a humility to all three of these guys,” Kerr said. “It's great to see. I think if you want to win championships, you have to have humility. You have to accept failure. Everybody does that. You accept failure after you win. That's what sports is about, that's what life is about.”
Since drafting Jaylen Brown in 2016 and Tatum in 2017, the Celtics have learned to prioritize team goals over individual player roles. The road to their 18th championship hasn't been without drama and tough decisions, but Kerr cited the humility of his current team as one of the driving forces that finally got the Celtics over the hump.
“They've had to overcome a lot of obstacles over the last seven or eight years that they've been knocking on doors,” Carr said. “They've kept trying, they've kept hustling, and they've done it with confidence and humility, which is a great approach.”
In addition to the Celtics trio, the other four members of Team USA — Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, LeBron James and Anthony Davis — have all won NBA championships. Embiid, Adebayo, Haliburton, Devin Booker and Anthony Edwards have not.
When asked if the Celtics talk about winning a lot, Curry and Durant responded with amusement.
“If Jason is saying, 'Here comes the champion,' every time he walks out, that's wild,” Curry said. “That's wild behavior.”
“We have champions on our team,” Durant added. “They're just recent champions.”
Still, the Celtics' approach and track record are understood by the two veterans, who played together on the last team to win back-to-back NBA championships.
“You can see the chemistry between them right away,” Durant said. “Those three guys are team players. They don't brag because they respect the game. And you have to respect what they've accomplished.”
The Celtics are certainly in the running to repeat as champions, with Las Vegas already teeing them up as favorites to win in 2025. So, have Curry, Durant and Kerr given any thought to the upcoming challenge? For now, they're not saying.
“I wouldn't give them advice,” Durant said, “at all. I think they're a great team and they're already thinking about what it would be like to win back-to-back championships. But it's hard to win back-to-back championships in our league.”
“We're not thinking about that at all,” Carr said. “Everybody here is focused on the gold medal.”
“I think the beauty of American basketball is that players throw everything about the NBA out the window, come together, share the responsibility and try to do something really special together.”
In about three months, the Celtics will celebrate their championship again with a ring ceremony at their home opener.
But for now, the hope is that the Celtics' talent and existing teamwork can lead the U.S. team to a fifth consecutive Olympic gold medal. The group stage begins Saturday in Lille, and the U.S. is scheduled to play Serbia on Sunday.
“Nobody's really thinking about the NBA right now,” Kerr said. “We really like the balance of age and experience on this team. None of that matters other than coming together as a team and taking our collective competitiveness to a higher level, and we're definitely able to do that.”
Nicole Yang can be reached at nicole.yang@globe.com. Follow us Nicole.
