Mazzulla has asked the Celtics to hunt second chances more aggressively over the last couple of seasons and now has the frontcourt personnel to carry out that vision. Boston\u2019s offensive rebound rate plummeted last season when either Horford or Porzi\u0146\u0123is were on the court. Many of their minutes should go to Garza and Neemias Queta, who have done great work on the offensive glass in limited playing time to date. Though the Celtics finished 18th in offensive rebound rate last season, they had the equivalent of a top-three ranking when either Luke Kornet or Queta were on the court. Kornet signed with the San Antonio Spurs in free agency, but Garza is in his class as an offensive rebounder and should allow the Celtics to churn out extra opportunities.<\/p>\n
2. The Celtics will again have a top-10 defense<\/p>\n
The Celtics lost two elite rim protectors in Porzi\u0146\u0123is and Kornet, one of the league\u2019s best defenders in Jrue Holiday and the ever-sound Horford, whose versatility was the key to so many difficult matchups over the years. Throw in the injured Jayson Tatum \u2014 whose stellar defense rarely receives proper credit \u2014 and Boston will need to replace a full lineup of great defenders.<\/p>\n
That won\u2019t be easy. The Boston frontcourt lost enough defensive awareness to fill a book. Garza and Anfernee Simons, two of the key offseason acquisitions, carry suspect defensive reputations. Mazzulla will need to patch over roster limitations he has never encountered as an NBA head coach.<\/p>\n
With frenetic energy and more aggressive schemes, the Celtics defense will still finish in the top 10. Returners Jaylen Brown, Derrick White and Payton Pritchard will set a fierce tone on that end of the court. Josh Minott, who looks ready for a big role, has constantly racked up steals and blocks over limited minutes throughout his young career. Xavier Tillman, who barely played while struggling with knee issues last season, now appears to be moving much better \u2014 and he has always been a great defender when healthy. It\u2019s not clear yet what Hugo Gonz\u00e1lez, Baylor Scheierman and Jordan Walsh will provide on offense, but the Celtics\u2019 backup wings should be chaos agents.<\/p>\n
Mazzulla will keep the Boston defense in the top 10 for the ninth time in the last 11 seasons. The Celtics haven\u2019t fallen out of the top 15 since Brad Stevens\u2019 rookie season as a head coach in 2013-14. Despite the personnel losses, this won\u2019t be the season that streak ends.<\/p>\n
3. The Celtics will rank 27th or worse in DReb rate<\/p>\n
The Celtics will force a lot more turnovers with a swarming style of defense. Unfortunately for them, they will also plummet down the defensive rebounding leaderboard.<\/p>\n
More aggressive schemes will leave them vulnerable on the glass. Plus, the Celtics just don\u2019t have the personnel to be a good defensive rebounding team. As much as Mazzulla focused on the skill throughout the preseason, sometimes yanking everyone who gave up an offensive board, Boston finished the preseason with a miserable 65.7 percent defensive rebound rate. It won\u2019t kill their defense, which has other strengths, but the Celtics will not be able to fix this weakness.<\/p>\n
4. Jayson Tatum will return in March<\/p>\n
During a media tour last month, Tatum made it clear he is aiming to return this season, though he made no promises on that front. While he and the Celtics should still be as patient as possible with his recovery from a torn Achilles, March will mark 10 months out from the injury. That\u2019s a somewhat realistic target, assuming everything with recovery goes well.<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\n
\n Jayson Tatum watches his Boston Celtics face the Toronto Raptors in preseason action. Will he return from an Achilles injury this season? (Maddie Meyer \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n
Even if Tatum does appear this season, it\u2019s highly unlikely that he will come back at his usual All-NBA level. He will need time to ramp up physically and will likely need to climb psychological hurdles after the first significant injury of his career. Still, based on how he has always fought to play in the past, he will likely be pushing the Celtics to suit up as quickly as possible.<\/p>\n
They can\u2019t let him do so before he has checked every box in the rehab process, but once he does, it could be good for him to shake off the rust late this season.<\/p>\n
5. The Celtics will still lead the league in 3-point attempts<\/p>\n
Let me do a quick Meek Mill impression:\u00a0Hold up, wait a minute. Y\u2019all thought they were finished (launching 3-pointers)?<\/p>\n
They are not. At all. Despite the lack of a true stretch five, the Celtics have enough willing shooters to lead the league in 3-point attempts for the third straight season. Pritchard and Simons won\u2019t stop looking for long-distance opportunities. White should hunt long balls like never before. Sam Hauser is one of the league\u2019s most consistent marksmen. And Mazzulla will give the green light to lesser shooters because he doesn\u2019t want defenses to stop worrying about them.<\/p>\n
6. Jaylen Brown will average six assists per game<\/p>\n
Brown has committed to playmaking growth over the last few years. He set a career high with 4.5 assists per contest last season. It would still take a big jump for him to record six assists per game.<\/p>\n
Brown is ready to take that jump. The prevailing sentiment might be that he will have to score more with Tatum sidelined indefinitely, but the evidence shows Brown\u2019s playmaking actually takes center stage when he plays without his co-star. Over 748 minutes without Tatum on the court last season, Brown averaged 9.6 assists per 100 possessions. That nearly doubled his average with Tatum on the floor and would have ranked in the top 20 across the league last season. The Celtics should still have an abundance of shooting around Brown, giving him easy passes when he dashes into the paint. If they play faster (and they should), it will only give him more chances in the open court, where he is often at his best.<\/p>\n
As the No. 1 option, Brown will have more pressure this season. It will be on him to lift up the others around him each night. The guess here is that his biggest improvement will come as a passer. He\u2019s far more equipped now to be the primary playmaker than he was earlier in his career.<\/p>\n
7. Luka Garza will finish top three in offensive rebound percentage \u2026 if he plays enough minutes to qualify<\/p>\n
The funniest Garza stat: He has actually had a higher offensive rebound rate than defensive rebound rate in each of his four seasons to date. That\u2019s \u2026 not normal.\u00a0None of the 179 players to qualify for the rebounding leaderboard last season finished with the same statistical oddity. Yet, Garza has done it for his entire career.<\/p>\n
Over 973 career minutes, he has rebounded like Steven Adams on offense and Sam Hauser on defense. The Celtics will need more from Garza on the defensive boards but must at least be able to trust that he can punish teams on the offensive glass. He should do that whenever he is on the court.<\/p>\n
8. Derrick White will be an All-Star<\/p>\n
Preseason statistics don\u2019t always carry over to the regular season, but White\u2019s sky-high usage rate (27.8 percent) was a sign of things to come. If he remains as aggressive during the regular season \u2014 and he should \u2014 there is the possibility of him establishing new career highs in scoring and assists.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2241294913-scaled-e1760907547149.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
\n Derrick White (9) could be a key player for the Boston Celtics this season. Will he have a season good enough for All-Star consideration? (Maddie Meyer \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n
Combined with his always-sparkling impact numbers, he will have a strong case for the All-Star Game if the Celtics win enough games. They will be good enough for him to make an All-Star team for the first time.<\/p>\n
9. The Celtics will have a negative net rating without White<\/p>\n
How negative it will be depends on Simons\u2019 fit and the performance of the young wings. Perhaps the Boston bench will force enough turnovers and grab enough offensive rebounds to stay afloat during non-White minutes.<\/p>\n
The guess here is that the Celtics will fall apart when he\u2019s off the floor. They were able to outscore opponents by 7.2 points per 100 possessions without White last season but no longer have enough talent to thrive without their best players. White\u2019s presence helps them in every facet of the game. They won\u2019t have enough playmaking or defensive acumen when he\u2019s on the bench and will lose the minutes without him this season.<\/p>\n
10. Payton Pritchard will average at least 18 points per game<\/p>\n
In his last 20 games without Tatum, Pritchard has averaged 19.4 points, 5.8 assists and 4.6 rebounds per game. Though some of those games were meaningless ones at the end of the regular season, Pritchard has spread his wings when given more of an opportunity to fly.<\/p>\n
He will have such opportunities consistently this season. Expect Pritchard, who averaged 14.3 points per game last season en route to winning the Sixth Man of the Year award, to take another leap statistically. The Celtics will need more scoring and playmaking from him.<\/p>\n
11. Anfernee Simons will get traded before season\u2019s end<\/p>\n
Following an offseason of salary cutting, the Celtics sit about $12.1 million above the luxury-tax threshold. They would be looking at a luxury-tax payment of about $39.5 million if they finish the regular season with their current roster. In a season of lower expectations, it might make sense for the new ownership group to avoid paying that much.<\/p>\n
If the Celtics can get out of the luxury tax entirely \u2014 and begin the process of resetting the repeater tax \u2014 they should do it. Even if they can\u2019t find a Simons trade (or a series of trades) that would shed that much money, it would be smart to move him in another salary-cutting trade if they don\u2019t consider him a part of the long-term future.<\/p>\n
12. Hugo Gonz\u00e1lez will appear in 50-plus games<\/p>\n
Before the preseason, I wouldn\u2019t have anticipated any role in Boston for Gonz\u00e1lez. The 19-year-old Spaniard is facing a big adjustment after playing a minor role for Real Madrid last season.<\/p>\n
He looked readier for the NBA than I expected throughout the preseason. He\u2019s smart. He\u2019s tough. He possesses advanced defensive instincts. He has the physical tools to impact a game athletically from day one. With the Celtics likely to play a lot of guys this season to maximize their new fast pace, expect Gonz\u00e1lez to be part of the rotation in many games, if not all of them. Based on the way he played during the preseason, he has likely jumped some more experienced players on the depth chart already.<\/p>\n
13. Chris Boucher will be in the lineup with the best net rating<\/p>\n
I don\u2019t know if Boucher will start. I don\u2019t know how many minutes he will play. I doubt he will always finish games. But with his length and activity, he will give the Celtics a needed dynamic.<\/p>\n
Boucher will play power forward in the lineup that leads the Celtics in net rating. And that group will force a bundle of turnovers and grab loads of offensive rebounds.<\/p>\n
14. The Celtics will finish top 10 in pace<\/p>\n
The Celtics haven\u2019t tweaked their style so much as they have cranked it up. Mazzulla has emphasized playing fast. He appears likely to sub quickly so that the players can give nothing but top intensity while in the game. He looks ready to use a rotation of 10 or more players to maximize the depth on his roster. Without as much scoring talent, the Celtics are aiming to be as gritty as possible. They intend to apply more defensive pressure, take more risks and push the ball up the court in transition.<\/p>\n
After finishing seventh in pace during the preseason, the Celtics will rank in the top 10 during the regular season. That will be a massive shift from last season when they ranked 29th.<\/p>\n
15. The Celtics will finish 45-37<\/p>\n
The roster isn\u2019t built to sustain key injuries. A long absence for any of the main scorers would spell doom. But when healthy, the Celtics will rack up wins. Their core is proud. Their supporting cast is hungry and athletic. They won\u2019t be great, but the city will appreciate this team.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In some ways, this Boston Celtics season is unpredictable. The team has a long list of new players.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":238256,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[64],"tags":[2242,355,99],"class_list":["post-238255","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nba","tag-boston-celtics","tag-nba","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/238255","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=238255"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/238255\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/238256"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=238255"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=238255"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=238255"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}