It was introduced in the preseason with fanfare and a video — then abandoned not long afterward with little notice at all.

The Celtics made a strong show of unity among themselves and solidarity with those standing up for social injustice when they took a cue from a 1960-61 team photo and held hands with crossed arms during the national anthem.

The accompanying video had players uttering single lines, with one stretch conveying the message that the Celts “humbly accept the baton to stand together to demonstrate the power of unity to face the issues of today and the ones that will come tomorrow.”

Accordingly, the team struck the same pose during the anthem for a while, but somewhere along the line early in the regular season, some players didn’t seem as eager to continue the practice.

Jae Crowder was in favor of continuing it, and it’s possible it could return at some point in these playoffs if the Celts feel the need.

“Yeah,” he said, “but the team just felt like the impact of it wasn’t as they thought it was going to be, and we went away from it. A lot of guys didn’t want to do it anymore, so we just don’t do it anymore.”

The start of the preseason coincided with Colin Kaepernick’s decision to kneel during the anthem to protest the unequal treatment of the minority community by authority figures. The Celtics were among the teams wanting to lend their support, and after being shown the old team photo, they hit on the theme of unity to both strengthen their own bond and have a more public say.

But soon the anthem move seemed to lose its steam.

“Everybody had their own opinion on it,” said Avery Bradley. “I felt like what we did made sense. I mean, you can’t do it every single game. We made strides as far as the (Shamrock Foundation) gala, what we helped raise money for, meeting with the police chief — like, all those things were very important for us, and we wanted to show unity. And I felt like that’s what we did. We didn’t need to continue to do it.

“I think we can lead more by example than just out there locking arms every single game. I think that’s how a lot of people feel. We don’t need to continue to do it. We made a video. That was cool, man, and there’s other things that we’re working on.

“But I was with whatever everybody else wanted to do.”

Said Crowder of the display during the anthem, “That’s just part of what we want to do to reach out to the community and reach out to the world. So we’re still going to do what we have to do in the community, and that’s go to events and be active. It’s just that part of it, we’re not doing that anymore.”

Celtic legend and Hall of Famer Tommy Heinsohn was part of that photo. He explained that the 1960-61 club wasn’t making a social statement.

“That was just us being together,” said Heinsohn, now a renowned commentator on the Celts’ broadcasts. “That was it. There was no statements like that. I mean, we weren’t. … I mean, the statement we made is we took the keys back to the mayor of Marion, Ind., when they wouldn’t serve (Bill) Russell and the guys in a restaurant after the game.

“What prompted it for these guys, you know, I’m not for. I think that whole thing is a sham.”

Heinsohn did like the fact these Celtics were embracing the franchise’s past.

“That’s both a blessing and a curse for players,” he said. “You know, they come in and they’re part of a historic franchise, but then they’ve got to live up to it. Some of them take it one way, and others take it another way. But what really I think impresses them is the people that they play in front of. That’s where you see the continuity of the tradition, in the way the people come to the games and support them.”