Celtics Lab 209: On covering the tougher stories in NBA journalism with Gary Washburn

The past few seasons have been some of the bumpiest in recent memory for the Boston Celtics off the court, with everything from the pandemic to internal scandal taking a toll on the on-court product just as the team starts to pursue another title in earnest.

One cannot tell the story of the Celtics last season without including the mess made by former head coach Ime Udoka, or why the team was among the last four clubs in the Orlando bubble without saying why they were there in the first place. While sports can be an escape, the human side of the tale matters too — and isn’t always the easiest aspect to cover.

As the Celtics emerge from one of their choppier campaigns in a while due to such issues, their summer teambuilding nearly finished, the hosts of the CLNS Media “Celtics Lab” podcast linked up with Boston Globe beat writer and “A-List” podcast host Gary Washburn to talk about how to cover and engage with those difficult aspects of the sport.