5 storylines to follow as the surging Celtics enter the home stretch
They've won 13 of 15, but the schedule gets tougher in the coming weeks. Can they keep it up?
Back in late January, the Celtics sat at 25-25 and appeared destined for another .500 season.
Since that point, they’ve made a remarkable turnaround, winning 13 of their last 15 and looking like legitimate title contenders in the process.
As of Saturday, only 17 regular-season games remain. Here are some storylines to monitor as the postseason approaches:
Can they continue to gain ground despite a tough schedule?
The Celtics currently sit in fifth place in the Eastern Conference – just 1.5 games behind the Bucks for third, 4.5 behind the first-place Heat, and three up on the seventh-place Toronto Raptors.
Avoiding the play-in tournament is important, and securing home-court advantage in the first round would go a long way as well. While it’s unlikely Boston will catch Miami, climbing up to third or fourth is certainly within reach.
The Celtics do, however, have the sixth-toughest remaining schedule. Games against the Mavericks, Warriors, Nuggets, Jazz, Raptors, Heat, Bulls, Bucks, and Grizzlies still remain.
They have four consecutive road games, against the Warriors, Kings, Nuggets, and Thunder, in mid-March, and close the regular season with three more against the Bulls, Bucks, and Grizzlies.
When will Jaylen Brown and Aaron Nesmith return?
The Celtics have dealt with some injuries of late, including one to star Jaylen Brown. Brown left Tuesday’s game against the Hawks with a sprained ankle, and he missed Thursday’s win over the Grizzlies.
Brad Stevens, the team’s president of basketball operations, seems optimistic Brown won’t be out for too long.
“I think he’s doing better than I would’ve originally thought when I saw him go down,” Stevens said. … “A little sore, but (the injury) doesn’t look like a long-term thing.”
Aaron Nesmith looked in-line to see more of a role in Brown’s absence, but he was the victim of bad timing as he injured his ankle against the Grizzlies. His status going forward is uncertain.
In their absence, Derrick White and Payton Pritchard have a chance to help fill the void. It’s possible Sam Hauser and newly acquired Nik Stauskas will earn minutes, but that remains to be seen.
Can they keep up the stellar defensive play?
The Celtics have played spectacular team defense in their last 15 games. ESPN’s Kirk Goldsberry has them prominently displayed in “The Quadrant of Wow,” with the No. 1 net rating and No. 1 in defensive efficiency in that span.
The Celtics are No. 1 in the NBA this season in field goals defended at the rim percentage (43.0), second in blocks at 6.1 per game, and fourth in contested shots at 54.8 percent.
The trend, of course, typically bodes well for the playoffs. Even if the Celtics struggle offensively at times, their defense will have a chance to carry them.
Will Jayson Tatum continue at this clip?
Jayson Tatum, who recently turned 24 (not 19), is playing some of the best basketball of his career. He’s averaging 30 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 5 assists since the All-Star Break and has entered the outskirts of the MVP conversation.
While Joel Embiid, Nikola Jokic, DeMar DeRozan, Ja Morant, Luka Doncic, and Giannis Antetokounmpo all appear to have the upper hand in the race at the moment, Tatum could possibly continue to make a late surge if the Celtics keep winning.
Either way, it’s seeming likely he’ll end up on one of the three All-NBA teams. Head coach Ime Udoka praised Tatum for evolving as a vocal leader and continuing to do the heavy lifting alongside Brown.
“(He’s) much more vocal, and then on the court he’s a bucket,” Udoka said on NBA Today. “He can get 30 in his sleep. We’ve just tried to help him grow and expand his game. He’s doing all the things he naturally does, but also becoming much more of a playmaker, a leader out there and getting everybody else involved.”
How will Ime Udoka allocate minutes?
Udoka has already tightened his rotation more than most NBA coaches do at this point. With Marcus Smart, Brown, Tatum, Al Horford, Robert Williams, White, and Grant Williams as the clear top seven, it will be interesting to see who else gets minutes down the stretch.
Pritchard and Daniel Theis appear to have earned their spot, and time will tell whether Stauskas or Hauser come in for additional shooting. The Celtics have an elite core, but depth has been a bit of a concern at times.
Now Udoka has a decision to make – he can expand the rotation with Brown and Nesmith out, or he can keep it small and continue to let his best players carry the load.
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