Celtics' glaring NBA schedule snub is completely indefensible

There are a few gripes the Boston Celtics and their fan base may have with the team's 2026-27 regular-season schedule. As they air their grievances like Frank Costanza on Festivus, perhaps at the top of that list is how many back-to-backs they're slated for.

Sixteen times, the Celtics will play two tilts in as many days. That's tied with the Brooklyn Nets and New Orleans Pelicans for the most in the league.

For an older team, with players like Paul George, Mitchell Robinson, and Jayson Tatum, who are unlikely to participate in both halves of some or all of their back-to-backs this season, that's a tough draw.

It also came as a surprise to see that Jaylen Brown's first game back in Boston -- outside of a potential preseason cameo -- won't take place until Jan. 21. That's still one of the most important dates on the Celtics' schedule.

However, once the NBA paired them up with the Miami Heat for a Christmas clash at TD Garden, it seemed like Brown's return wouldn't have to wait this long.

Regardless of the counterarguments and justifications, those are fair complaints for the franchise and fan base. Yet, flying under the radar is Boston's least defensible schedule snub.

The Celtics' exclusion from NBA Rivals Week is baffling

The league's original monarchy had to go through the Los Angeles Lakers to take its seat on the throne. From Bill Russell battling Wilt Chamberlain to the slugfests between Larry Bird and Magic Johnson and Paul Pierce getting a chance to go toe-to-toe with Kobe Bryant in the Finals, this is the NBA's most iconic rivalry. It's one of the preeminent rivalries in all of sports.

Then, there are the constant clashes between Boston and Philadelphia. Since the 1950s, these regional rivals have squared off in the playoffs in every decade but the '90s.

Jaylen Brown's role as a central antagonist to "The Process," standing in the way of it becoming more than a catchy moniker, and now trying to help get Joel Embiid a championship, makes the Celtics and Sixers' next chapter among the most compelling.

Add in LeBron James relocating to the City of Brotherly Love. It's a once-in-a-lifetime figure attempting to add to his legacy in the final stage of his career. He hasn't just spent his 23 years in the Association battling with his peers. He has simultaneously been wrestling with Michael Jordan for the status of greatest player of all time. It's head-scratching to see a matchup between Boston and Philadelphia left out of NBA Rivals Week.

Then, there's the Celtics and the Knicks, Boston vs. New York, and two of the league's last three champions; there's an entire week dedicated to this theme, and that doesn't get a place on the card?

How is there room for the Cleveland Cavaliers to face the Toronto Raptors in primetime on a Friday night, but no spots for the most decorated team in NBA history?

What sort of rivalry do the 76ers and Miami Heat have? It's a compelling matchup, but make it another week. The Cavaliers facing another opponent from last year's forgettable playoff run, the Detroit Pistons, is another confounding choice when you consider what they picked it over.

The Celtics will spend that week, the last one in January, facing the Raptors twice and hosting the Los Angeles Clippers and Phoenix Suns. For that to be their slate during NBA Rivals Week is indefensible.

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