10 predictions for the Celtics season

Instead of going through a usual roundup of predictions, let's spice things up a little bit with some over/unders on key categories and players for the upcoming Celtics season.

Points per Game: Kyrie Irving
Over/Under: 25.5
Prediction: Over. He averaged 25 ppg last year without having the ball in his hands nearly as much as he wanted. In Boston, he's going to be surrounded by a pair of unselfish All-Stars so opportunity won't be a problem. The points may not always come efficiently, but Irving is going to put up big numbers. I'd peg him at 26 per game.

Assists per Game: Kyrie Irving
Over/Under: 6
Prediction: Over. I know you can't put too much stock in the preseason but Irving changed my vote in this category with his performance. He was a pass-first player for long stretches of games and his touch and vision was far better than I remember watching in Cleveland. With defenses collapsing on him more in the paint as games continue, he should surpass six and post a career-high in this department.

Points per Game: Gordon Hayward
Over/Under: 20.5
Prediction: Under. Hayward has improved his points per game average in six straight seasons but that's going to come to an end in Boston as a second option. He'll remain steady in the high teens but I think he's going to end up finding the open man more than looking for his own shots. He'll excel from beyond the arc and punish opponents in the pick-and-roll but I'd expect his assist averages to get more of a jump than his scoring.

Points per Game: Al Horford
Over/Under: 13.5
Prediction: Over. Irving and Horford are going to create more open looks for Horford and he's also going to have the benefit of bigger centers chasing him on the perimeter most nights this season. We saw him had a field day doing this against the likes of Robin Lopez and Marcin Gortat last postseason and I expect that trend to continue with better personnel surrounding him. I expect him to push 15 points per game.

Rebounds per Game: Al Horford
Over/Under: 7
Prediction: Over. If this number is under seven with Horford playing center, the Celtics will be in a bit of trouble. The 31-year-old has looked spry this preseason and I expect him to fight off additional regression on the glass.

3-point shooting percentage: Marcus Smart
Over/Under: 31 percent
Prediction: Over. I'm buying into slim Smart! At least a little bit. Shooting 32 percent from downtown is still pretty bad but that's still a dramatic improvement after failing to crack to 28 percent threshold over the past two seasons.

Points per Game: Jayson Tatum
Over/Under: 9.5
Prediction: Under. He's going to get plenty of minutes during the first couple weeks of the season, but it's hard to see him cracking much more than 20 minutes per game over a full year. That makes the 9.5 ppg pretty daunting for a rookie that's going to be playing with plenty of guys that aren't afraid of getting up shots themselves (Smart, Rozier, Morris).

All-Stars from the Celtics
Over/Under: 2.5
Prediction: Over. The Western Conference may have two full All-Star rosters that are better than what the Eastern Conference can come up with on just one. The Celtics will take advantage of that lack of talent by sending Hayward, Horford and Irving to the showcase.

Regular season win total for Celtics
Over/under: 56.5
Prediction: Under. The state of the Eastern Conference makes me want to go over for this category, but I just can't do it. Injuries are going to pop up like they have already with Marcus Morris. Horford and Irving aren't going to play a full 82 games. The Western Conference is a monster and even though the Celtics aren't going to play those teams more than twice, those losses will still add up. Put me down for 56 wins and the second seed in the East.

Playoff rounds for Celtics
Over/under: 3.5
Prediction: Under. An epic showdown awaits between LeBron James and Kyrie Irving in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Celtics will come close to reaching the promise land in year one of the Irving/Hayward/Horford era but they will fall short in seven games.

Over/unders courtesy of Bovada, (www.Bovada.lv, Twitter: @BovadaLV).