The Celtics are not title favorites this season, and frankly, they may not even be true contenders. If we’re talking about championship ceilings in the Eastern Conference, it’s pretty clear that the Knicks are the cream of the crop, but they were only a three seed last year, and we could certainly see a championship hangover in the regular season. After that, things are pretty volatile
If everything goes well, the 76ers will be very good, but there’s a lot of room for things to go off the rails. The Pacers made the Finals two years ago, but Tyrese Haliburton hasn’t played in a year. The Raptors with Kawhi Leonard could be scary, but for now, that’s all hypothetical.
The Pistons and Cavaliers were top-four seeds last year and met in the second round of the playoffs, but neither team has had a very inspiring offseason, and I have a feeling they each take a bit of a step back. Miami added Giannis, but the team around him has no depth and makes little sense. The Hawks, Magic, and Wizards are lurking on the periphery, hoping to take a major leap.
Celtics have fewest regular season question marks in the East
But at least in terms of the regular season, none of them seem like a sure thing. Whereas the Celtics have just proven to be a regular season juggernaut, almost regardless of who’s on the court. That’s what we saw last year, and this season, the roster is even better on paper. With Joe Mazzulla’s possession-maxxing style, the team is going to have a top-tier offense and defense with Jayson Tatum leading the way, and they are going to find advantage, pluck all the low-hanging fruit, and almost certainly cruise to 50+ wins.
Swapping Jaylen Brown for Paul George was obviously a huge change, but otherwise, this team has great continuity, returning 10 players who were part of the rotation last season, while adding the veteran George, plus Mitchell Robinson and Mike Conley, who should fit right in.
These guys know the system, they know each other, and they know how to rack up wins. We saw last year that Mazzulla doesn’t care about expectations or anything else, as the team was widely expected to tank and instead won 56 games and earned the two seed.
Real test for Celtics comes when playoffs start
There’s no reason to expect anything less this year with a healthy Tatum and new additions, and yet, it feels like the team is already being written off after losing to the Sixers in round one and then trading Brown.
And perhaps there is something to that, but again, it’s more of an issue for the playoffs. In the regular season, Mazzulla and company are going to be motivated and ready to go. The team is extremely deep, and there are a lot of guys with something to prove who are going to be competing for minutes.
I’m not saying they are going to be a dominant force in the playoffs, or even necessarily a favorite in round one. What I am saying is that they are as safe a bet to finish with a top-four seed as any team in the East, and it almost doesn’t even matter who’s on the court. Joe has solved the grind of the regular season.
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