How might the Boston Celtics do in the NBA’s new in-season tournament? According to NBA Dot Com’s Brian Martin, it all depends on how the Celtics gel early in the season after an offseason that saw a lot of roster turnover. Per Martin, the Celtics “lost some defense and toughness with the losses of (veteran Celtics point guard) Smart and (Robert Williams III), but the addition of (star big man Kristaps) Porzingis gives the Celtics another elite offensive weapon to complement (All-NBA forwards Jaylen) Brown and (Jayson) Tatum.
“How quickly things come together on the court will go a long way to determining how well this team does during the Group Play stage of the In-Season Tournament,” adds Martin.
For the NBA’s inaugural in-season tournament, the Celtics will be playing in Group C, which features four other teams in the league’s Eastern Conference.
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That group includes Boston, the Brooklyn Nets, Chicago Bulls, Orlando Magic, and Toronto Raptors, none of whom should be on the Celtics level as one of the NBA’s top projected contenders, but all of whom have enough talent on their roster to give Boston trouble if they play down to their opponents.
The Celtics will play the Nets on Nov. 11, Toronto Nov. 17, Orlando Nov. 24, and the Bulls on Nov. 28 in group play. For more details on the tourney and what it entails, click here.
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