BOSTON —The Celtics still have 16 regular-season games remaining after defeating the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday but their postseason future is starting to become a bit more clear.
After a 21-6 stretch over the past 27 games, Boston has pulled themselves from the No. 11 seed in the East to No. 5. That spot could move higher in the coming days and weeks considering the Celtics sit just 1 1/2 games behind the 76ers and Bucks for the No. 2 seed in the East.
While there will be plenty of jockeying in the standings until the postseason begins in mid-April, one thing the Celtics are getting closer to doing with their superb stretch of basketball is significantly reducing the odds of a nightmare opponent in the first round.
As recently as January, making the first round at all was a concern for Boston as the team hovered around .500 but things have changed in a hurry. With the team’s third win over the Nets in the past month on Sunday, the Celtics have put a healthy amount of separation between themselves and the No. 7 seed Raptors (four games).
That’s incredibly important since in all likelihood the Brooklyn Nets are going to be a team that is waiting as an opponent in the East play-in tournament after they fell to 32-33 overall on Sunday, dropping them into a tie for No. 8 overall in the East.
The Nets are currently 5 1/2 games behind the No. 6 seeded Cavs with 17 games to play, likely too big of a deficit to make up even with Kevin Durant back in the lineup. Kyrie Irving is still sitting out the majority of those matchups during home games due to New York’s vaccine mandate and Ben Simmons is showing no signs of returning to the court soon as he deals with a sore back/avoiding Philly fans.
Boston does remain within striking distance for the No. 2 seed overall in the East (which could in theory lead to a first -ound matchup with Brooklyn) but that scenario would involve jumping over three more teams in the standings (Chicago, Milwaukee, Philadelphia).
The Celtics have the toughest schedule remaining among that bunch so it’s an unlikely hypothetical even with Boston rolling like they are. To be honest, the No. 2 seed is a spot they should ultimately be trying to avoid in order to dodge that potential Brooklyn matchup.
Instead, a friendlier bracket draw is starting to emerge as the East postseason picture begins to separate a bit. With the 76ers and Bucks mostly healthy now and rolling, the Celtics look poised to finish anywhere in No. 3-5 seed. That puts them in a good spot to see a favorable first-round opponent (Cleveland, Chicago, Toronto) instead of a juggernaut like Milwaukee or Philadelphia.
The sixth-seeded Cavs just lost Jarrett Allen indefinitely to a fractured finger so it’s hard to see them keeping pace with Boston despite only trailing them by a game. Toronto is four games back at No. 7 and dealing with plenty of injuries. Meanwhile, the Bulls are just a game up on Boston after losing four in a row and still are without key guards Alex Caruso and Lonzo Ball with no set timetable on their returns.
With those obstacles baked in for East rivals, the path to home-court advantage is there for the taking by Boston in what is turning into a wide-open Eastern Conference race. There’s going to be tough opponents waiting in Round 2 and 3 no matter what but a softer opponent early on could go a long way.
“This is the time you start to gear up, tighten up the details, start getting those habits, getting ready for playoff basketball,” Jaylen Brown said after Sunday’s win. “That’s what platform that we want to be on. So as the days go by, more and more of the focus, more and more of the intensity is important.
“So our group, it’s about us, just trying to get better each and every game. And that’s what we’ve been doing along the course of the season. It didn’t start off that way. It started off looking bad, but it’s a marathon, not a sprint. So I’m glad our guys stayed the course because I think we still have yet to reach our peak.”
A friendly playoff draw will help the Celtics reach that peak in April as they attempt to advance through what will be a gauntlet of Eastern Conference contenders. Sunday’s win was another crucial step in avoiding the preseason title favorites and increasing the odds of a meaningful postseason run.
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