As the Celtics look to get over the hump and win a long-awaited championship, they certainly have experience on their side. But they also boast a proven champion who knows how to get to the mountaintop.

Jrue Holiday won a championship with the Bucks in 2021, and Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla has certainly taken the opportunity to pick his guard’s brain for wisdom and insights.

“He’s asked me about my championship run and kind of just how it went,” Holiday said. “Obviously, we had a different team than this one here. So things might be slightly different. But I think we just kind of figured out it’s going to be hard and you’re going to have to adjust and be open minded enough to adjust. That’s a part of sacrificing.

“Sometimes, if you have to be the magnet or the person who’s going to attract and make the right play. Things like that. It’s been – we talked about that. You already know the ’08 team and kind of their route and kind of went over that. Cool to see just the different ways that people got to the championship.”

The road to a championship is a physically draining journey, and Mazzulla used a long practice on Tuesday to keep them ready in that regard. He described it as a “huge cardio day.” Holiday revealed that one portion of the session included a full-court drill in which they couldn’t dribble for 2-3 minutes. It was meant to help them with their stamina and continue to gain chemistry.

But on Wednesday, the Celtics dialed it back. Wednesday focused on execution, situational basketball and reading the game. It was a “mentally competitive” practice, Mazzulla said. It’s an area that will be crucial, Holiday said, to going the distance. Winning four seven-game series requires a level of mental focus.

“When you scout for one team, you try to take away all the advantages that they have. That’s kind of where playmaking and really mental fortitude comes in,” Holiday said. “Because, at the end of it, you kind of feel like each team knows what you’re going to do. Really just being mentally tough and being a tougher team that makes plays at the end of a game.”

Red, white, blue and official

Team USA formally announced its men’s basketball roster for this summer’s Paris Olympics, and as expected, Holiday and Jayson Tatum made the team for their second Olympics. They’ll join a star-studded cast that includes LeBron James, Steph Curry, Joel Embiid and Kevin Durant.

“It’s an honor,” Tatum said. “It’s something that I’ve always wanted to do growing up. Excited about my second opportunity to play in the Olympics this summer.”

In the announcement, Team USA made videos of managing director Grant Hill formally inviting all of the players in person by surprise. He showed up to Tatum’s house, and then was waiting inside Holiday’s kitchen.

“It was a surprise, right?” Tatum said. “Sitting on the couch watching TV and the doorbell rang and it was Grant Hill. So I definitely was not expecting that.”

Holiday, too, was caught off guard.

“It’s pretty random. I didn’t see that coming,” Holiday said. “I thought my wife was better than that. She usually warns me or something but she didn’t warn me. It was cool. It was cool to see. Obviously he just gave me my jersey and asked me to be on the national team and just congratulate me. Just really excited.”

Holiday is looking forward to another Olympics experience. The 2021 Games were in Japan, and it was a little overwhelming.

“I was tired,” Holiday said. “It was a 13-hour flight or something like that. Yeah, it felt like it took a long time to get there and once we got there, we landed that morning and we had a game that night. So, the experience I think was a bit different. … I’m just excited for this opportunity. It’s gonna be a lot different being able to be just more open, go to different events, see different professional athletes around the world.”

First- round schedule

The Celtics don’t know their first-round opponent, but they know when they’re playing. Game 1, as expected, is Sunday at 1 p.m. in Boston. Game 2 is on Wednesday at 7 p.m. before the series shifts on the road. Game 3 is Saturday, April 27 at 6 p.m. with Game 4 (time TBD) on April 29. Games 5-7, if necessary, will come on May 1, May 3 and May 5.