The Boston Celtics have plenty of room to maneuver, as far as NBA power rankings are concerned.
The Celtics will begin the second half of the 2020-21 NBA season outside of the top-10 in both NBA.com's and ESPN's power rankings. Boston's 19-17 record has the team in fourth place in the Eastern Conference standings and in a decidedly lower echelons than the NBA's elite sides.
The Celtics entered the break on a four-game winning streak, which pushed them up four places to No. 11 in NBA.com's power rankings. The streak separated the C's from the other Eastern Conference teams that hover at or around the .500 mark, and John Schumann believes Boston is poised to continue climbing the rankings when Marcus Smart returns from his calf injury.
"The Celtics have seemingly steadied themselves, finishing the first half of the season with a 4-0 homestand in which they scored more than 121 points per 100 possessions, with a lot of guys (even Jeff Teague) contributing," Schumann wrote. "They’re still a step below the top three teams in the East (though they’ll get a shot at one of them on Thursday), but they’re half a step ahead of everybody else.
"And they should be getting Marcus Smart (who last played on Jan. 30) back this week. The Celtics’ most-used lineup has played just 113 minutes (fewest for any team currently in playoff position) and includes both Daniel Theis and Tristan Thompson, who’d they’d probably prefer to keep separate most of the time. A healthy Smart will help them do that."
ESPN improved Boston's ranking by three spots since last week. The major Celtics storyline for the second half that Tim Bontemps highlighted Monday might make or break the season for the C's.
"As the Celtics have gone through their many ups-and-downs over the past couple of months, the topic on everyone's mind in Boston has been what they could do with the massive trade exception they created when Gordon Hayward signed with the Charlotte Hornets during the offseason," Bontemps wrote.
" If the Celtics can go get a difference-making player -- presumably a big wing who can guard power forwards -- to play alongside All-Stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, all-world defender Marcus Smart and Kemba Walker, Boston has a chance to make a deep playoff run once again. It's unclear, however, whether such a player will be available in what could be a thin trade market, and whether Boston, which hasn't acquired a player in an in-season trade since Isaiah Thomas six years ago, will be able to land him. But it is the one question Celtics fans will be asking until the trade deadline passes."
The NBA trade deadline is March 25, and the rumors are swirling around the Celtics for reasons Bontemps outlines.
Boston will play 36 games games in the ensuing 75 days, and how that period and the ensuing playoffs unfold will factor heavily into perception of the team's state and future direction.
