3 positive trends the Boston Celtics must keep improving upon
By Mark Nilon
These past few months of action have been unbelievably entertaining and overall delightful for the likes of Boston Celtics fans and, with 16 games remaining on the regular-season schedule coupled with the postseason right on the horizon, this jubilant joy-ride certainly doesn’t seem like it’s anywhere close to finishing.
Since the start of January, the C’s have managed to rattle off 22 wins through 30 outings and, as a result, sit soundly in the Eastern Conference’s fifth seed, boasting a record of 39-27 whilst keeping their sights set ahead as they look to continue climbing up the standings.
Throughout their recent run, Boston has managed to up their production in several key areas of their game which, in turn, has played a major role in their mid-season triumphs.
In order to keep their hot streak alive as we begin to make our way towards the playoffs, the Celtics must not diverge from their recent high-end level of play, and we at HH believe that there are 3 positive trends, in specific, that Ime Udoka’s squad must look to continue improving upon during this final stretch of the campaign:
Boston Celtics positive trend No. 1) More effective second-unit
Over the past several years, we’ve found the Boston Celtics struggling mightily when it has come to the production of their second unit.
That said, during their current hot streak, and, more specifically, since the arrival of their big trade deadline acquisition, Derrick White, the team’s bench squad has seemingly flipped a switch, as they’ve quietly become one of the more prominent groups in the entire league.
Prior to the guard’s arrival, the C’s reserves found themselves ranking in as one of the most average all-around units in the NBA, placing smack dab in the middle of the pack at 15th overall in NET Rating.
However, since playing his first game on February 11th, the bench has managed to significantly rise in the ranks when it comes to their overall play and, as a result, find themselves stationed at a stellar third overall in team NET Rating.
Their steadily improving production as time’s gone by has managed to result in quite a few potential X-factors for the ball club as we inch closer to crunch time on the year and, if they can continue on with this positive trend, come playoff time, having a competent and trusty second-unit could prove to be unbelievably valuable.