The Celtics got back to winning ways on Tuesday against the Raptors, but like most days in December, it didn’t help them much at the top of the East standings. That’s thanks to a Cavs team that has gotten off to a hot start and looks as big a threat to Boston as any team in the league right now.
The Cavs improved to 3-0 on their West Coast road trip on Tuesday with a double-digit win over the Lakers. They’ve won all three contests on their road trip by double digits against formidable playoff opponents (Nuggets, Warriors, Lakers) and have now won eight straight games overall. That’s tied with the third-seeded Knicks for the two longest streaks in the NBA right now.
After running away from the Eastern Conference last season in February, the Celtics are at risk of suffering the opposite fate with an imposing schedule in January. Boston has played a very friendly schedule thus far (19 at TD Garden, 14 on the road), the most home games of any team in the East. They’ve also played a softer schedule overall with just four total games against Western opponents.
That all changes for the Celtics in January with two four-game road trips against likely West playoff teams. The 24-9 Celtics are already five games behind the Cavs in the standings and would do well this month if they can keep the Cavs from opening up a bigger lead.
The Cavs started the season on a 15-0 run, but are now on pace to win 72 games in 33. They are now fully healthy with Kenny Atkinson and only have one long road trip left this season (four games or more) . They currently have the best offense in the NBA and their defense (7th in the NBA) is also ahead of the Celtics right now.
The Celtics certainly wouldn’t fear the Cavs, even without home-court advantage this postseason, but the fact that they could fall out of the race so early in the year is a bit of a bummer. With the Knicks just one game back in the standings in the midst of an eight-game winning streak, the challenges are starting to pile up for Boston.
The good news for Joe Mazzulla and company is that the Celtics have been a better road team (11-3) than the home team (13-6) so far this season. With a slew of high-profile opponents to face in the coming weeks outside the Garden, the Celtics should be fully engaged and better equipped to figure out where they stand in a suddenly competitive Eastern Conference.
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