3 teams the Boston Celtics can realistically surpass in the standings
By Mark Nilon
Team the Boston Celtics could surpass No. 2) Chicago Bulls
Next up on our list we have the team that likely will prove to be the hardest for the Boston Celtics to ultimately surpass in the Chicago Bulls.
Currently slotted into the second seed in the Eastern Conference, Billy Donovan’s squad has been playing like a well-oiled machine seemingly all season long. With DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine both leading the charge, the Bulls have been absolutely lethal on the offensive side of the ball, ranking fourth in the league in offensive rating, which, in turn, has led to their stellar record of 39-22 through 61 games played.
With Nikola Vucevic playing some of his best basketball of the year over the past month and the return of Lonzo Ball seemingly right on the horizon, one would be under the belief that the Bulls have more of a chance of staying put within the top two seeds out east rather than sliding, but when looking at their upcoming schedule, coupled with their pedestrian production on the less glamorous side of the ball all year long, it’s not out of the realm of possibility that we could see this team fall a few pegs between now and their season finale on April 10th.
According to Positive Residual, Chicago will find itself enduring the league’s second-most challenging second-half schedule in the entire association and, during this final 21 game stretch, 12 of their outings will be against teams ranking within the top-15 in offensive rating, eight of whom fall within the top-seven which could spell trouble for the team for, again, they struggle on the defensive end of the floor, ranking 19th in the league in defensive rating.
With all this said, however, it’s not as if we’re predicting a cataclysmic disaster for the boys in the Windy City.
Instead, we’re projecting a rather strong second-half for the Celtics with a potential of seeing a slight slow down for the Bulls which, considering these two clubs are currently separated by just three wins, could be the difference-maker when it comes to which team finishes ahead of the other.