The Celtics are off to a very impressive 10-2 start, which is the best record in the Eastern Conference, and while they certainly haven’t faced the hardest strength of schedule, the travel and lack of rest have been absurd, and it’s only going to get worse. They’ve already played three back-to-back sets this season, with the last two taking place in two different road cities each night.
If that wasn’t enough, they have three more back-to-backs before the month of November is even over, and that’s the least of their issues. In the 30 days of November, the Celtics will play 16 games, including 12 road games, which is a franchise record for any month.
Celtics' November schedule is absolutely brutal
They have two separate stretches that include seven games in seven different cities, they’ll spend 21 days on the road, they’ll play in all four time zones (plus Wednesday night’s trip north of the border to Canada), they’ll hit the entire Texas triangle, and all told, they’ll travel over 15,000 miles.
They finally arrived back home in Boston on Thursday morning after a stretch of 13 consecutive days with either a flight, a game, or both, that started on October 30th, and the most grueling part of this month’s schedule is still ahead of them.
It’s an absurd way to start the season and an outrageous amount of miles (literally and figuratively) to put on these players. It’s hard to believe that this is best and fairest for the players, the league, or even the fans. Heck - I’m already exhausted just from watching the games on my couch.
Celtics have been up to the challenge so far
And yet, so far, the Celtics have looked up to the challenge and then some. They swept the recent four-game road trip with three blowouts, and they now hold the best net rating in the entire league and a point differential that’s tied with the Spurs atop the NBA.
The Celtics lost a wonky afternoon game on opening day in Detroit when they blew a big second-half lead, and then they lost in Houston on the second night of a brutal back-to-back without Paul George playing. Other than that, they’re perfect for the season. They’ve had several opportunities for scheduled losses, but they’ve risen above that.
Sadly, they’ll have to keep it up, and it feels like any team can only take so much. At a certain point, they might actually have to worry about self-preservation and getting guys some rest. It’s a shame, and it doesn’t seem necessary at all, but it is what it is. Joe Mazzulla and the Celtics definitely aren’t going to make any excuses or feel bad for themselves, and if they can continue to weather this storm, they’ll be in great shape for the rest of the season.
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