Can Celtics beat 72-10 record?

[-Young Buck-]

Right now they are 20-2. On pace to go 75-7. It might be early to discuss this, but i was wondering what the bulls record was after the first 22 games. Something we can compare the celtics season to. Does anyone have a schedule of how the bulls record went during the season they went 72-10?

[_marsal]

Here's an interesting link showing the comparison between the two teams:

http://www.nba.com/features/celtics_chase_70.html

But I doubt they'll win 70 games. I predict a 60-22 season.. Don't forget, their schedule is about to get tougher..It will be interesting to see how they'll face teams like the Spurs, Suns, Pistons, Mavs, Jazz..

[benji]

The 1996-97 team was only a game worse at 19-3 after 22 games: http://www.basketball-reference.com/tea ... games.html

The 96 Bulls were first on offense, first on defense, had expected record of 70-12. The 97 Bulls were first and fourth, expected record of 68-14. The 2008 Celtics are fifth and first, and have an expected record of 66-16.

[Sauru]

i believe this got brought up in the celtics thread didnt it

[-Young Buck-]

Thanks for the links. It should be interesting to watch during the season.

[Matthew]

It seems like every season this comes up. Last year it was Dallas. The year before that was Detroit.

I don't think they'll get it, but when you look at how weak the rest of the East is and you have to like their chances. One 3 game losing streak though and it's pretty much out the window.

[CMJ3]

If the main two Garnett and Pierce remain healthy for the whole season it is quite possible, Ray Allen is important also but as you can see from the previous two games they can cope without him but if it were Pierce or Garnett to go down then i dont think they would last very long. I hope they stay healthy and give it a shot although i think they will probably miss the record of 72 wins but high 60s is very possible.

[-Young Buck-]

Well i would say that KG, Pierce, and Allen are more of a scoring threat than Jordan, Pippen, and random player #3 were for the bulls team. With the Celtics you dont know who will get 30 on you, plus the bulls didnt have the low post scoring threat like boston does with KG. Pierce is great combo of inside and outside, and is there any better outside shooter then allen? Add in the number one defense in the NBA and id say they have a good shot. With the Bulls you knew Jordan was going to get his 30 shots a night. Dallas was last years team to try for the run but to be honest their triple threat isnt even close to the celtics. Dirk chokes, Howard is streaky, and Terry only gets to shoot every so often. While KG and Pierce are guys who can dominate a game and score in the end when needed. Allen is one of the purest shooters ever. Their triple threat is a lot better then Dallas. To be honest im not ready to jump on the train just yet, ill wait till the station is in site before i really start to pay attention to it. But i do think its possible.

[Matthew]

The Bulls defense and rebounding were the keys to that team being successful, they slowed the pace down and owned the offensive and defensive boards. Plus, don't underestimate Kukoc as the 3rd option on the Bulls team.

Being a triple threat isn't the determining factor of winning 72 games, just ask the 80's celtics.

[YoG!]

They will never make it! They will definitly lose at least one game to Spurs,Suns,Mavs,Pistons,Magic. that's allready 5 losses that makes a total of 8 losses so 3 more would mean they wont make it.

[Sauru]

i would not say the celts are gonna lose vs those teams, the spurs? i would be happy with a split there, mavs? i dont think the mavs are as good as the celts, suns? i fully think we can win both of those but again would be happy with a split, pistons? dont worry me much, and magic? they already got us once

[Silas]

Oh the Celtics can definitley beat the Suns. The Suns do not know how to guard Ray Allen. Every time he plays against them they play poorly and he plays incredibly well. If he can beat them on the Sonics he surely can lead the Celtics to victory over them.

I also agree they can beat the Mavs. The Mavs are a good team this year, but I don't think they're Celtics good, and they have had some serious consistency problems. Especially if the Celtics catch them on a cold streak, that game is probably going to be won by Boston.

As far as the Pistons and the Magic go? I'd say the Celtics are the better team. They're both eastern conference teams and yet the Celtics still sit at the top of the standings. You can argue schedule, but I just think their triple threat is too much for the Magic's defense, the Pistons have to rely too much on Chauncey and Rasheed to create offense. Rip doesn't really create his own shot and Tayshaun isn't a scoring minded player, and I think the effort Chauncey and Rasheed are putting out every night is starting to catch up with them.

[Kbryant8]

They will never make it! They will definitly lose at least one game to Spurs,Suns,Mavs,Pistons,Magic. that's allready 5 losses that makes a total of 8 losses so 3 more would mean they wont make it.

WRONG, Boston has only 2 losses right now, so if thy gain 5 more then it makes 7, need to learn some math dude.

[Lamrock]

The Celtics are looking great right now, but I doubt they win 70. I see them going on a couple of losing streaks and finishing in the 65 area. This comes up with a team almost every year though.

[skip2mahbaby]

Considering the Big Three are healthy, I still doubt that they would reach 70. 65 is doable, though.

Also, the Bench of the C's are doing well right now. I never expected them to contribute this much. Rondo is growing as a PG, and they have Posey and House off the bench.

But considering their "easy" schedule, I'd look forward to matches vs the powerhouse of the West. I think the Spurs post a big threat to the, with Duncan and parker healthy..

[shadowgrin]

A serious Garnett injury is all it takes to make the Celtics' season abysmal.
Without Garnett the Celtics are merely a Bulls clone without defense and 'pointguarding'. The Celtics don't even have a bench like the Bulls.

[Carmo]

lol, how are they anything like the bulls if they don't have the defense, the "pointguarding" or a bench....?

[Indy]

You have to be extremely deep to win 60+ games. The Celtics are top heavy enough to reach the 60-65 win mark, but they are not deep enough to go any higher then that.

[wade_03]

You have to be extremely deep to win 60+ games. The Celtics are top heavy enough to reach the 60-65 win mark, but they are not deep enough to go any higher then that.

Yes I agree. They have not faced any big teams like the Suns or Spurs, they have 4 games to play with those teams alone off the top of my head that can take them out anyday. That's 4 losses there and then there has to be a couple other losses making them not hit the 70, (Raptors )but high 60's most likely.

[shadowgrin]

lol, how are they anything like the bulls if they don't have the defense, the "pointguarding" or a bench....?

I was thinking more of the go to guys in the starting 5 then.

Ray Allen - Ben Gordon (even though he's been shooting dumps lately)
Paul Pierce - Luol Deng

[The X]

lol, how are they anything like the bulls if they don't have the defense, the "pointguarding" or a bench....?

I was thinking more of the go to guys in the starting 5 then.

Ray Allen - Ben Gordon (even though he's been shooting dumps lately)
Paul Pierce - Luol Deng

Ben Gordon & Luol Deng are jokes compared to those 2 Celts....both of their best case scenarios don't even come close to those 2 sorry....

[Andrew]

Obviously it's still mathematically possible and they've had a very impressive start so at some point the possibility of 70 wins has to come up but as Matthew said, it's been brought up the last few years with Dallas and Detroit (and Phoenix the year before that) looking like challenging the record only to miss the mark, albeit finishing with impressive records all the same.

The bottom line is that winning 70 or more games is easier said than done, which is why it's only been done once with only a handful of teams coming close throughout the years. It's a long season and the chances of a losing streak here and there, clashes with other elite teams and plain bad luck usually put an end to a team's chances for 70 wins. If the Celtics reach the All-Star break with 3 or 4 losses and/or still have less than ten losses come March then they're in a great position to challenge 72-10. For now, recent history suggests that while they seem destined to finish with an impressive record, perhaps 65 wins or more, they'll fall short of 70.

[-Young Buck-]

A true test tonight vs the pistons. I know i will be watching!

[Ghashta]

A serious Garnett injury is all it takes to make the Celtics' season abysmal.
Without Garnett the Celtics are merely a Bulls clone without defense and 'pointguarding'. The Celtics don't even have a bench like the Bulls.

Exactly.

One injury will completely destroy the Celtics. They took a great risk by trading their entire team for these superstars.

The Celtics are very impressive, but I don't think that they can constantly match up with teams such as Phoenix and San Antonio.

[Silas]

Well seeing as they lost against the Pistons at home, and they still have to play them again, as well as Phoenix and Dallas and San Antonio two times, it seems like it is growing ever more unlikely. But who knows. I hope they do, but only because of Ray Allen.