Crawling to Camp: How Can the Celtics Be Even Better Than Last Season? originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
THE Boston Celtics published one of the most dominant campaigns in NBA history Last season, they set an NBA record in offensive rating, tied for third all-time in net rating and finished in the top five all-time in point differential.
But let’s be greedy. How can the Celtics take another step forward in the 2024-25 season? For the 12th part of our Camp access ramp series, that’s the question we posed to our NBC Sports Boston panel: How can this team get even better?
(See our Full Ramp to Camp series here.)
Perhaps a better question is: Where do you start nitpicking?
The Celtics won 17 games by 25 points or more, meaning 20% of their games were total losses. They finished 14 games ahead of their closest rival in the East. They crushed the playoffs, without even seeing a Game 6 along the way.
The Celtics have lost their way against inferior opponents at times (this loss to the short-handed Celtics Lakers February 1st still haunts us) and yet they have never lost more than two games in a row, and even that has only happened four times all season.
Our panel focused heavily on BostonBoston’s late-game shot selection, and we’d like to complain about settling for mediocre shots. But Boston posted an absurd +46.9 net rating in 24 minutes of decisive time in the playoffs and went a perfect 6-0 in those games. This team apparently learned from its regular-season missteps and had a knack for making big plays in big moments (right, Pacers?)
So here’s the best we can come up with: The math-loving Celtics can go even further in their execution late in the quarter. The Celtics did a great job of generating 3-on-2 and 2-on-1 possessions in the final minute of the quarter, but it appears that the quality of the shots wasn’t fully maximized.
Maybe it doesn’t matter. Analytics suggest that the most important thing is creating those opportunities. But having everyone on the same page and knowing exactly what kind of shots the team wants to create in the final 65 seconds of a quarter could go a long way toward making the Celtics’ offense even more effective.
(That sounds crazy considering they’re coming off the most efficient season in NBA history, but we said the goal here was to be greedy.)
Here’s what our panel wants to see:
I have a theory and it is that Jaylen Brown’s game-tying three-pointer in Game 1 The win over Indy was a game changer. The Celtics often look disoriented in tight situations and late in games, but they are now champions. They haven’t seen anything new, so play like it’s the case, even if the game is on the line.
Tom GilesMulti-platform host
It’s hard to complain about much, but maybe complacency? There have been times when we’ve seen the Celtics let their hair down — and what team doesn’t? — but if they can limit those moments, they’ll be a machine.
Better offense in crucial moments. Yes, the Celtics went 21-12 in “decisive” games last season (scoring within five points in the final five minutes) and 6-0 in the playoffs. But if we’re going to nitpick, we want to see better ball movement on late possessions and fewer contested fadeaways. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
The backups. To be fair, the Celtics don’t need their bench to be prolific on offense because they have arguably the best starting five in the league. That said, the Celtics ranked 26th in bench scoring last season.
Payton Pritchard is able to take an additional step (or two) in its development. Lonnie Walker IV can get offensively hot, assuming he is healthy and makes the team. Beginner Baylor Scheierman is a very good outside shooter. There is reason to believe that the second unit can give Boston a bit more scoring this season, which would be helpful since the starters are not expected to play too many minutes.
Less ISO ball in decisive moments. Pick up the pace and move the ball. The Celtics were exceptional in almost every statistical category last season, but their slower pace late in the fourth quarter and in overtime was often mind-boggling.
Kevin Miller, Vice President, Content
I still think that late game situations can be improved. Use the depth of the team as an advantage in these situations.
