The Boston Celtics are against one of the top teams in the NBA this season. They are looking to defend the championship that they took home in 2023-24 and are off to one of the best starts of any team in the league. They are near the league in many statistical categories, including one of the more important ones in the modern game.
Celtics On Pace To Set A New NBA Record
Their rise to prominence began when they started high-volume three point shooting. During the 2021-22 season, the Celtics ranked 9th in the league in three-point attempts per game. The hoisted 37 of them per game, but was a figure that was nearly four attempts lower that the league leader that year.
They haven’t ranked outside of the top-3 in any season since. In 2022-23, they put up 41.8 attempts per, second to only the Golden State Warriors. Then came their championship season, which coincided with their first place finish in three-point attempts. During that 2023-24 campaign, they put up roughly the same amount per game that they had the season prior, but the teams around them saw dips in their production from deep.
#CelticsWin pic.twitter.com/moYpmtjOOC
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) December 7, 2024
This season, they are making no mistake about it. Through their first 23 games played, the Celtics are averaging 51 three point attempts per game, a number that would have been unthinkable in the NBA even ten years ago. It is a full 7 attempts more than any other team currently averages, with the Charlotte Hornets coming in at 44 per. By comparison, the Denver Nuggets shoot the fewest threes, putting up 31 per contest.
Should they remain at their current pace, the Celtics will shatter the league record. The Houston Rockets current hold the mark when they averaged just over 45 three-point attempts per game in back-to-back seasons starting in 2018.
Of course, the shots have to go in. Boston is not the top three point shooting team when it comes to accuracy, a crown that currently belongs to the Cleveland Cavaliers. But the Celtics are in the top-10, currently holding the 8th-best percentage by hitting 37.6% of their long balls. This means that they score more than 57 of their nightly points by way of the 3-pointer, nearly 50% of their total points and the highest mark in the NBA.
