The Boston Celtics had their 11-game winning streak snapped on Tuesday night when they lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers. It was their first loss since February 1st, and they had built up a seemingly insurmountable 8.5 game lead over the second place team in the Eastern Conference since that time.
Can Celtics Finish With A Top-20 Win/Loss Record Of All-Time?
nonstop buckets 🔥 pic.twitter.com/hkgXABYFfJ
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) March 5, 2024
The loss itself doesn’t hurt Boston’s run for home court advantage throughout the postseason. They are still eight games up on the Milwaukee Bucks and another half game on the Cavaliers, and it doesn’t appear as though they’ll even come close to losing nine more games this year in order to be overtaken.
And not that it was ever a real possibility, but the chance of being the 3rd NBA team to ever win 70 games in a season is now over with their 13th loss of the campaign.
But just how close will they get to the mark, and where would it put them on the list in terms of most wins in a single season?
The schedule will help immensely. The Celtics have by far the easiest remaining schedule in the NBA, still with two games to play against each of the Wizards, Pistons, Hornets, and Trail Blazers. They will endure a 6 game road trip to close out the month, but will play 6 of their final 7 games inside TD Garden.
How Close Can They Get To 65 Wins?
The Boston Celtics have won 10 straight games.
They beat their opponents by an average of 19 points per game in that stretch. pic.twitter.com/vQVPtAkp6o
— StatMuse (@statmuse) March 2, 2024
The chase for 65 wins could be a close one. The Celtics would have to close out the final 21 games with a record of 17-4, a winning percentage of 81%. That would seem like a tall task in itself, but the level of their upcoming opponents would certainly aid them in their pursuit. There is also the possibility of the team resting some of their star players during the final week or so of he regular season, given that they could have the conference wrapped up near the beginning of April (or sooner).
Should they reach that 65-win plateau, they’d be the 22nd team in NBA history to do so, and the first since the 2016-2017 Golden State Warriors went 67-15.
While their schedule is soft the rest of the way, the toughest remaining stretch is underway. The Celtics will take on the Denver Nuggets in a potential NBA Finals preview on Thursday, followed by a a game against Phoenix on Saturday. They’ll take on the Suns again five days later.
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