After beating Warriors, the Celtics have a real shot of making franchise history with their win streak

Only 35 teams in NBA history and four teams in franchise history have put together a longer winning streak than the Celtics’ current 14-game run during the regular season. After taking down the defending NBA champions on Thursday night in a 92-88 thriller, it’s fair to wonder just how much longer this historic stretch could last for this surprising new-look squad. While acknowledging that the NBA's longest winning streak ever (33 games) is still safely out of reach, let’s take a deep dive into the upcoming schedule to determine what kind of shot these Celtics have of making franchise history by topping the 19-game winning streak of the 2008-09 Celtics.

Upcoming Schedule

11/18: @ Atlanta (3-12)
11/20: @ Dallas (2-13)
11/22: @ Miami (6-8)
11/24: vs. Orlando (8-7)
11/25: @ Indiana (7-8)
11/27: vs. Detroit (10-4)
11/30: vs. Philadelphia (8-6)
12/2: vs. Phoenix (5-11)
12/4: vs. Milwaukee (8-6)
12/6: vs. Dallas (2-13)
12/8: @ San Antonio (9-6)

Analysis: The Celtics will be favored in their next ten games according to Fivethirtyeight.com, prior to a December showdown in San Antonio against a Spurs team that may or may not have Kawhi Leonard back in the lineup at that point. The fact there is only one back-to-back over the next ten games also bodes well for the C’s chances of extending the hot run for several more games since fatigue shouldn’t be a major issue for any of these contests. Time to examine each of these opponents to see where exactly the Celtics might run into trouble, even though they'll be favored in all of these contests (barring injury).

Game-by-Game Analysis

@ Atlanta: The Hawks gave the Celtics all they could handle a couple weeks ago, but they also shot 50 percent from 3-point range in that game. I wouldn’t expect that to happen in their rematch on Saturday night.

@ Dallas: Dennis Smith Jr. could be something special, but this group collectively can’t score or defend with any consistency. They rank in the bottom five of the league in offense and defense and the C’s should be able to clamp down on them with their league-best defense and defend Dirk Nowitzki well with their length.

@ Miami: I’d rank this one as the biggest looming threats for a loss remaining on the C’s schedule over the next couple of weeks. The Heat played the C’s tough in Miami a couple weeks back and did so without a number of key contributors, including Hassan Whiteside. Erik Spoelstra always has this group playing and defending hard with a number of feisty guards and when you factor in the potential Kelly Olynyk revenge game variable, it’s a strong candidate for the streak stopper.

vs. Orlando: The Magic might have D.J. Augustin back in the fold in time for this game and he was a key catalyst to their stellar offensive start to the year. However, we’ve seen in the past couple weeks that this team is coming back to earth, particularly in the shooting department. They’ll challenge for a playoff spot this year, but they aren’t much more than that. C’s should be able to handle them at home.

@ Indiana: The Pacers on the second half of a back-to-back are another upset candidate. They play at a high pace and surprisingly have one of the best 10 offenses in the league during the early season, thanks to a breakout season from Victor Oladipo. The Celtics could struggle to keep pace with their tired legs, but the good news is Indiana will have played the night before as well.

vs. Detroit: Who would have believed the Pistons would be one of the best two teams in the East nearly a quarter of the way through the season? This game will undoubtedly be an emotional one with the return of Avery Bradley to the Garden, but Detroit matches up well with the C’s on the court as well. They can throw Bradley on Kyrie Irving and Andre Drummond is always going to have the rebounding edge against any team he faces. This team also came to Boston last year and won during the regular season. Now, they are even better equipped to do it again with better personnel this time around.

vs. Philadelphia: Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons have been putting on a show for the last couple weeks, but the C’s have Al Horford and Aron Baynes to combat them with.

vs. Phoenix: The Suns gave up 90 points to the Rockets in the first half on Thursday night. Let’s move on.

vs. Milwaukee: Incredibly, this will be the third game between the two teams less than 25 games into the season. Eric Bledsoe has fit in quite nicely so far, giving the Bucks two legitimate offensive options around the Greek Freak and a major challenge for the C’s offense.

vs. Dallas: They are 1-6 on the road this season, so not a real threat for an upset.

@ San Antonio: I'd expect the streak to end here at 24 if it's somehow still going.

Three most likely games to end the streak

1. @ Miami: Before Thanksgiving, a free night in South Beach and a healthy Heat squad could mean trouble.
2. vs. Detroit: A good team (top-10 on both ends of floor) mixed in with Bradley revenge game factor.
3. @ Indiana: Second half of a back-to-back.

Prediction: Since I wrote all of this, the C’s will probably end up losing in Atlanta on Saturday night. I’ll say Wednesday night in Miami, which would put the streak at 16 games, three short of the franchise record.