Can Anyone Top the Boston Celtics?
The Boston Celtics have taken the league by storm with their league-leading record of 48-12. The Celtics so far already have three wins by 50 or more points. This team has been so difficult to stop having the third-highest points per game behind the Pacers and the Bucks. They have executed this because of the excellent scoring of Jayson Tatum who averages about 27 points per game and Jaylen Brown who averages almost 23 a night. Not only do these players dominate the game but as a whole the team shoots 38.6% from three. The difference between the Celtics and the other teams in the league is that they have one of the best defenses in the league.
It is unlikely as of now that anyone can catch the Celtics for the first seed, but we have seen it happen before. The team that has the best shot at taking over the first seed is the Milwaukee Bucks. They unexpectedly fired their head coach Adrian Griffen and hired Doc Rivers mid-season. For a team that had a well above a winning record at the time, it was very strange to see. Doc Rivers started his tenure with a rack of losses but as of late, the team has caught fire. The Bucks are second in points per game with Giannis Antetokounmpo averaging 30.8 points per game and Damian Lillard 24.2 points per game. Defensively, the Bucks have struggled, but as the season winds down, I believe they will kick it into another gear. With Giannis and Brook Lopez on the defensive front, I have no doubts that the defense will figure it out.
The last team that has a chance to overtake the Celtics for the first seed is the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavaliers have great defenders like Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley to help behind the guards of Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland. The offense on this team has but underwhelming all season with it being the bottom half in the league in points per game. What can help them score more can just be a faster pace of offense and with Mitchell's tremendous scoring ability, the Cavaliers may need him to do even more than before.
I believe that the Celtics will win the Eastern Conference, but the past few years have had very strange endings to the end of the seasons. Will Tatum feel overrun and then feel burned out? Will Jaylen Brown get forced to his left more? Will Porzingis get injured again? There is always something weird going on with the Celtics. Can they finally get over the hump?
