The Boston Celtics were the favorites to win the Eastern Conference once Jayson Tatum returned from his injury. He missed most of the regular season as he was still recovering from his torn Achilles. However, he returned for the playoffs.
Boston ended up blowing a 3-1 lead to the 76ers in the first round of the playoffs. Heading into this season, they are putting more on Tatum’s shoulders after trading Jaylen Brown. Now, they have top-five odds to win the championship this season.
The Celtics Are Given the Fifth-Best Odds to Win a Championship
According to ESPN’s Basketball Power Index, the Celtics are given the fifth-best title odds. They are given a seven percent chance to win it all. Only the Thunder, Spurs, 76ers, and Knicks are given a better shot. The Celtics will have a new starting lineup heading into the year.
Without Brown in the lineup, the Celtics will have to rely more on Paul George. George is someone with a huge injury history, so relying on him for large stretches will be tough. In the last seven years, he has missed 213 games. That’s a far cry from what Brown gave the team.
Boston will be better at the center position after adding Mitchell Robinson. Robinson will help with the rebounding and the rim protection. However, he is also an injury risk. As a backup, having him on the roster is better than what they had a year ago.
The only East teams ranked above the Celtics in this metric are the 76ers and the Knicks. New York is the defending champion and kept most of the team intact. Philly has a new lineup after adding both Brown and LeBron James to the starting lineup.
Boston has a lot of younger players who had to get minutes last season, so management is counting on them to step up. Hugo Gonzalez is going to get more minutes in his second year. Baylor Scheierman will get more time off the bench, as well.
Boston Has a Great Chance to Make the Playoffs
The BPI loves Boston’s chances of making the playoffs, as well. They have a 97.2 percent shot to play in the postseason this season. That’s the second-highest in the East, only trailing the Knicks. They also have the fourth-highest win total projection, sitting at 51.3.
These analytics believe that the Celtics are going to have a real shot at winning the title. In reality, it all comes down to the availability of Tatum. He missed Game 7 last season after playing big minutes once he returned from his Achilles injury. Keeping him on the court is the key to winning a title.
Last season, Tatum averaged 21.8 points, 10 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game in the 16 regular-season games he appeared in. His points and assists should go up this season, as should his shooting percentage.
Boston Celtics Given Surprising Title Odds by ESPN BPI