protect the paint made an already good team even harder to beat.

He's totally in sync with this team. Loves Boston, the tradition, ethe town, the international aspects. He lives in the same condo complex as Jaylen Brown and they share driving in/out of the Garden and Logan.

He's been the missing link that will bring #18.

tradition of great centers as the Lakers...you left out Walton btw. And it's no coincidence that both those franchises have the most championships.

The Warriors bought in small ball but good big men can still make a difference.

Some center time but a lot of time with the power 3. (Bird/McHale/Parrish)

When he was with the Celtics, of course. He was seldom on the court without either Robert or Kevin. So, he went to the spot where his partner wasn't. He played center when McHale was on the court. PF when Robert was. He was certainly versatile enough.
Made for an awesome 4 man rotation in the front court.

Watching old film from the 80's blows me away as I remember just how great they were.

Like Barkley & Malone never winning because of that Jordan guy, Larry & his guys only won three because Magic was in the way.
Take Magic out of the way & the Celtics may have won 6 or 7.
These 4 & DJ being one of the best defensive guards in the modern era made that one tough to beat outfit.

There's no substitute for a guy who can chuck it in.
Of course, similar to Kerr with the Bulls, as the 4th (or 5th) option, he had to make a high % or they'd quit giving him the ball!

They have the 2nd best effective FG% in the league & the second best FG% against.
#2 in the league on both sides of the court.
Pretty darned good.