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The 2023-24 Boston Celtics were statistically one of the best teams in NBA history.

Not surprisingly, the Celtics tied the game. All 10 players who played a total of more than 60 minutes in the playoffs remain on the roster. And with that, they achieved 83% of the vote in this year’s GM survey to secure another title in 2025. That’s the third-highest rate in the survey’s 23-year history.

But the Celtics are not the same team they were last season. They certainly weren’t that dominant, and they lost two games in a row for the first time since Christmas.

Here are some notes, numbers and films about the changes in Boston.

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1. Statistically worse compared to an easier schedule

Only three teams* have outscored their opponents by at least 10 points per game in consecutive seasons. Dominating the regular season for the second year in a row after a long road to the NBA Finals is difficult.

* Milwaukee Bucks 1970-71 and ’71-72, Chicago Bulls 1995-96 and ’96-97, Golden State Warriors 2014-15, ’15-16 and ’16-17.

But these Celtics also had a relatively easy schedule, playing in 30 games against opponents with the fifth-lowest cumulative winning percentage (.469). Only 10 of their 30 games have come against the 13 teams currently at least two games over .500. (They are 6-4 in those games.)

The Celtics haven’t experienced much of a slump on offense or defense and are still one of four teams – the Cavs, Grizzlies and Thunder are the others – ranked in the top 10 on both ends of the floor.

AdjO = Points scored per 100 possessions compared to league average
AdjD = Points allowed per 100 possessions compared to league average
NetRtg = points differential per 100 possessions

This team still knows how to take advantage of their talent and utilize it on both ends of the floor. But the Celtics will need to continually be deliberate in their execution to be as dominant as they were last season. It might just be impossible to focus on for a second straight 82-game season.

Whatever the reasons, the Celtics have found their way back a bit and may no longer be the overwhelming favorite we thought they were two months ago.

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2. More and more 3s

Last season, the Celtics led the league in 3-point percentage and made 47.1% of their shots from 3-point range. This season they have seen the fourth most jump in 3-point percentage, with 55.1% of their shots coming from long range, which would be the highest rate in NBA history.

Biggest jump, 3PA/FGA

The Celtics don’t hesitate to take shots from distance.

Their 3-point attempts were dribble-happy, more contested, and less likely to be followed by a touchdown than last season…

• According to Second Spectrum tracking, only 62% of their 3-point attempts were unrealistic, the fourth-lowest rate in the league and down from 68% (sixth-lowest) last season.

• Only 43% of their 3-point attempts were fully open, the fourth-lowest rate in the league and down from 46% (sixth-lowest last season).

• The ball has touched the paint on just 58.3% of the Celtics’ possessions, the second-lowest rate in the league and down from 61.1% (fourth-lowest) last season.

• Boston is the only team to rank in the bottom three in both ball movement (29th) and player movement (30th), after finishing 17th and 24th last season.

If they are a little more patient and aware in targeting weak defenders, exploiting mismatches, moving bodies and moving the ball, the Celtics can still get some great shots from beyond the arc…

And volume is important. Although the Celtics shot worse from 3-point range, they outscored their opponents from distance in 25 (83%) of their 30 games, compared to 54/82 (66%) last season.

They are one of only five teams that have posted a decline Opponent 3-point rate and therefore the third lowest opponent rate in the league (40%) this season. So while they shoot 3s at high volume themselves, they limit the volume of 3-point attempts at the other end of the court.

This means they don’t have to rely as much on shooting a high percentage from 3-point range. They were slightly better shooting under 36% from distance this season (9-6, .600) than they were last season (18-13, .581).

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3. The bank is historically not good

The Celtics started last season with a great top six but had questions about their depth. And then they had the best bench in the 28 seasons for which we have play-by-play data, with their reserves posting a total points differential per 100 possessions of plus-6.2. Statistically, the Celtics performed better with Jayson Tatum on the floor (plus-12.4) than with him on the floor (plus-11.2).

Although Payton Pritchard has made great strides in scoring and efficiency this season, reserve minutes haven’t been as good. The Celtics’ bench is still in fourth place, but saw the fourth-largest decline compared to last season.

This year, the Celtics have been much better with Tatum on the court (plus 12 points per 100 possessions) than with him off the court (plus 2.9). Their loss to the Sixers on Christmas was their third loss in a game in which Tatum had a positive plus-minus, matching his total from last season.

When accounting for the league-average decline in efficiency, the Celtics’ decline in non-Tatum minutes was greater on defense than on offense.

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4. Porziņģis’ absence was noticeable in defense (in the paint)

Despite the decline in ball movement and 3-point percentage, the Celtics still boast the third-best offense in the league. As for their ranking, they have seen a larger decline on defense, where they sit eighth through Thursday.

There have been blips where the Celtics have allowed 50 points per 100 possessions, up from 48.4 last season. They’ve seen relatively large jumps in both the percentage of opponents’ field goals made inside the field and the percentage of their opponents’ shots that landed there.

The increase in attempts comes as the Celtics limit their opponents’ attempts from 3-point range. But teams may also have more success attacking 38-year-old Al Horford in the pick-and-roll than they have had in the past…

The overall decline in paint defense can also be attributed to the fact that Kristaps Porziņģis has only played in 11 of the Celtics’ 30 games so far. In terms of total playing time for the Celtics, he played about half as much as he did last season (21% vs. 43%).

The Celtics’ paint defense was much better with one of the best rim protectors in the league on the floor…

The Celtics defense over the last two seasons

%FGA = Percentage of total field goal attempts

Overall, the Celtics’ defense was a little worse with Porziņģis on the court, but that came down to the perimeter numbers: 3-point percentage and turnover rate.

We can expect the defense to improve as the season progresses. At this point, Boston has only played five of its 23 scheduled games against the other nine teams currently ranked in the top 10 offensively.

They will play two more games this weekend, hosting the 10th-ranked Pacers for a two-game series that begins Friday (7:30 p.m. ET, NBA TV).

Not only will this matchup test their defense, but it could also bring back some memories of how relentlessly the Celtics attacked weak defenders when they won the Eastern Conference Finals seven months ago.

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John Schuhmann is a senior statistical analyst for NBA.com. You can email him here, his archive can be found here and Follow him on X.

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