Boston Celtics: A deep-dive Into the first half of the C’s 2020-21 Schedule

The West Coast Voyage

• 10 Games
• Level of Difficulty: Very Hard
• 7,856 miles traveled
• 2 back-to-backs

After this needed breath-catching stage, the Boston Celtics will have their toughest six-game stretch during this first half of the schedule — the most challenging in both the travel and matchup department.

After getting a crack against the NBA champs at home, the Cs will embark on a five-game, eight-day Western Conference circuit, spanning 7,856 miles and touching down in three different states.

The West always comes with its series of surprises.

Last year, the Thunder and Grizzlies exceeded expectations. This year, the Suns and Warriors will be returning with improved rosters, both teams conceivably in the hunt for a playoff spot.

The most challenging part of this west coast voyage comes on the backend of this trip. Boston faces the improved Los Angeles Clippers with Luke Kennard and Serge Ibaka, a healthy Jazz team with Bojan Bogdanovic back, and the Chris Paul/ Devin Booker led Suns, three playoff-bound teams with lofty aspirations.

Last season’s team outperformed many of their Western Conference road matchups. If you included scrimmage and seeding games, last year’s Celtics team had an impressive 19-12 record against the always competitive West.

Once back, the Cs have opportunities to rebound if their Western Conference trip doesn’t go as planned. The Celtics will fly back to Boston and head into their longest home stretch of the season with five games in seven nights against a number of Eastern Conference, play-in tournament teams with a Denver Nuggets matchup sandwiched in between, another potential opportunity for the team to make up ground.