The Boston Celtics defeated the New York Knicks 116-102 at Madison Square Garden on Saturday night to record their eighth straight win of the season. This gives Boston an eight-game lead over the Cleveland Cavaliers, who are now in second place in the Eastern Conference.
That is a greater difference than the seven games separating the eighth-place Phoenix Suns from the West-leading Minnesota Timberwolves. But the Celtics claimed they have tougher standards to meet rather than celebrating their league-leading performance through the first two thirds of the season.
The way the season has gone, to put it simply, is what Celtics center Al Horford said. “We’ve sort of held our own and kept trying to solve problems. The Sixers are obviously injured, and other teams have other issues as well, so those factors are taken into consideration.
“However, I can only say that we’re still playing excellent basketball. We’re sincerely attempting to play the correct game. I believe that Joe Mazzulla, the coach of the Celtics, is pushing us to keep improving. We’re attempting to do that because this is the part of the season where we can really push it to the next level.”
When asked what another level looks like for a team like the Celtics, who according to ESPN Stats & Information have the best record in the league (45-12), a commanding lead over the rest of the conference, and are among just six teams since 1996–97 to have a net rating above 10 points per 100 possessions (10.5, to be exact), Horford grinned.
“That’s a really good question,” he responded, “but I feel like we’re not where we need to be yet, and that’s a good thing.”
The Celtics have essentially simply continued winning. No matter who has been available, Boston has been able to produce victories in an Eastern Conference that, as Horford mentioned, has been plagued by injuries to almost every club behind them. The Celtics’ victory over the Knicks on Saturday was not only their eighth straight, but also their ninth in their last 11 games and their 13th in their previous 15 meetings.
Through three quarters, the Celtics shot an impressive 80% from 2-point range (24-for-30) against the Knicks, a team still without its starting frontcourt of Julius Randle (shoulder), Mitchell Robinson (ankle), and OG Anunoby (elbow).
Jalen Brunson’s 34 points and nine assists at the half helped New York stay in the game until Boston changed their matchups in the third quarter to put Kristaps Porzingis on smaller defenders and make Brunson’s life more difficult in the pick-and-roll.
That, along with the fact that the Celtics made nine 3-pointers in the third quarter alone, helped Boston win pretty easily despite the game having been close at times.
“The guys understand how to positively impact each other,” Mazzulla stated. They are aware that exploring a certain area early on in the game will make it more accessible to another player later on. Additionally, the guys trust the various combinations we have, which improves our chances of winning.
“The guys are realizing that the main goal is winning at all times. They are aware of their mutual effects.”
Boston understands the wider picture as well. Since the beginning of the 2016–17 season, Jaylen Brown’s rookie year, the Celtics have won more regular-season games (394) than any other NBA team, and more playoff games (61) than any other team save the Golden State Warriors (68), who have won multiple NBA titles during that time. This includes Saturday night’s victory.
Conversely, the Celtics have yet to hoist banner 18 from the rafters of TD Garden. The postgame message from Brown, Horford, and Porzingis was always the same: although they are happy with their current play, this team is focused on getting ready for the playoffs.
Brown responded, “When it comes down to the playoffs, none of that stuff really matters,” when asked if he has seen how much Boston has separated themselves from the competition. It seems to me that playing hard and matchups will be key factors. Naturally, having a home court advantage is important, but no matter your seed, you still need to win basketball games when things become serious.
In fact, it increases your workload. However, I believe our crew has experience. We’ve dealt with these circumstances previously, so I believe we’re prepared.”