Are the Boston Celtics about to go on a historically dominant playoff run, one that would only rival the likes of the 2017 Warriors and 2001 Lakers?
There are many words you can use to describe the 2023-24 Boston Celtics. Dominant, overwhelming, unrelenting, complete, historic, and flawless are a few of those words. Soon, champions could be added to that long list. And as the Celtics continue to prove their dominance, most recently via a 52-point win over the Golden State Warriors, you can't help but wonder if they could be preparing to make playoff history in a couple of months.
Specifically, are the Celtics about to go on a playoff run that only rivals a couple of other teams in NBA history, most notably the 2001 Los Angeles Lakers in which they went 15-1 en route to an NBA Finals win?
Of note, the 2017 Golden State Warriors also only lost one game en route to a 16-1 playoff run as they won the NBA Finals. The Celtics will likely enter the playoffs with the chance to do something similar. Even though an argument can be made that this year's Celtics will have some tougher competition, the fact that they're even being compared to some of the all-time great teams tells you all you need to know about how good they've been.
The Boston Celtics have been historically good
The Celtics are posting historic numbers across the board this season and even on paper, they have one of the most talented rosters in the league. The Celtics have an 11.6 net rating this season and that qualifies as the fourth-best in league history. The only three teams that have had a better net rating in NBA history are two Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls teams (1995-96, 1996-97) and the 2016-17 Warriors. The Celtics are on par with both of those teams. As long as they can avoid the injury bug, they'll have a chance to make history in the postseason.
Boston is healthy and has been for relatively the entire season. Heading into the start of the year, with how overwhelming they appeared on paper, the belief was that one of the only factors that could end up derailing the season was injuries. So far, that hasn't been much of a problem for the Celtics.
But that's where the last few weeks of the regular season could be key. The Celtics are cruising and will likely lock up the No. 1 seed in the East standings at the end of March. This is a team that may not have much to play for over the last couple of weeks of the season, and that's where they can get some much-needed rest for their core players heading into the playoffs.
The Celtics are having a historically good regular season and that could only be the beginning of what could be awaiting this team during the offseason.