As of now, the Boston Celtics have completed 20 games of their regular season, which is roughly one quarter of the way through. That’s about enough sample size to come to some general conclusions about the team. It doesn’t mean things won’t change between now and June, but real trends have started to emerge from the randomness of individual games.
The Celtics are 15-5 with a perfect 9-0 record at home. Two of their losses came in overtime games and only two were by double digits (including last night’s 10 point loss).
They are 1st in net rating, 10th in offensive rating, and 2nd in defensive rating. They are 25th in assist percentage, 3rd in rebounding percentage, and 4th in effective shooting and 6th in effective shooting % (all via NBA stats).
Anecdotally, many of the same themes from last year have persisted. Great when the 3’s are falling, sometimes a mixed bag when they are not. However, the team has also found a way to grind for some ugly wins.
Jayson Tatum just won East Player of the Month and Jaylen Brown has had a strong season as well. Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday have been welcome additions that still haven’t become fully integrated and utilized optimally (in my humble opinion). So there’s still room for growth there. Al Horford and Derrick White are as solid and steady as they come. Sam Hauser and Peyton Pritchard have established themselves as solid rotation players. Beyond that it is very much a mixed bag with Luke Kornet and Danalo Banton playing in the most games thus far.
Looking ahead, according to Tankathon, the Celtics have the 3rd easiest schedule remaining (3 games left against the Pistons and Wizards for example). Following this week’s tournament games, the team will have 4 straight home games (two against Cleveland and two against Orlando) before leaving on a West coast trip that takes them through Christmas.
So what are your overarching conclusions about this team thus far? What’s worked? What hasn’t? Do they need to make changes to the lineup? Trades? Monitor the buyout market? Do you think this team has what it takes to raise a banner this year? Fire away with your opinions and predictions!
