The Celtics issues aren’t new. A Celtics player warned Blake Griffin not to come last season due to dysfunction. Kemba hated the boos from Celtics fans and had a tense relationship with Brad Stevens. Hayward also told Brad he needed a stronger voice in the locker room : nba

source: Celtics reporter Jared Weiss

free source with excerpts: https://nesn.com/2021/06/kemba-walker-pissed-by-celtics-fans-boos/

Walker maintained his professionalism throughout the season but his health issues, the team’s poor performance and boos from TD Garden fans — something that particularly “pissed him off,” according to multiple sources — made him sour on his situation in Boston and had spoken privately about being willing to move to a new team. It had become clear he was not going to be in the team’s long-term plans.

According to multiple team sources, there was some dysfunction in the locker room, with the relationship between Stevens and Walker characterized as tension-filled. Sources also suggest that Stevens was also perceived to be harder on Walker than on other top players.

The Celtics’ dysfunction reached the point that Blake Griffin asked a friend on the roster if he should sign midseason & was warned to stay away, sources tell @TheAthleticNBA.

This came in the wake of Gordon Hayward’s departure, after which sources said Hayward told Stevens he needed to establish a stronger voice with players if they were going to win.

Several team sources felt Stevens was more aggressive with certain players this season, which included Walker who was criticized for his defensive mistakes. Those sources said Walker and Stevens began to butt heads, though the pair were considered to have a productive working relationship and mutual respect for one another.

“At season’s end, multiple sources close to the players said several members of the locker room were welcoming a coaching change, noting Stevens did not appear to hold key players accountable, with complaints he was favoring Smart over others,”