The Celtics schedule is officially out, and at first glance, it looks like the Celtics could be catching the kind of break they need coming off a Finals run.
The biggest benefit they have is just 13 back-to-backs, two fewer than last year. They do get their first one almost immediately when they travel to Miami two days after their home opener for a back to back with the Heat and Orlando Magic, but Orlando will be a young team that likely struggles their way through most of the season. They get Chicago for the third game in four nights, but then get three days off for their next home game.
There are three back-to-backs in November, which seems to be a pretty standard month with eight home games and seven on the road. Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets are in town on November 11 and Luka Doncic and the Mavericks visit on the 23rd.
Miami visits for an Eastern Conference Finals rematch on the 30th and December 2, the first of three ‘mini-series’ sets against the same opponents. This one takes Boston into what will be a wild month of December.
After the second Miami game, Boston heads out for a six-game road trip that starts with a Brooklyn/Toronto back-to-back, the a trip to Phoenix, a Finals rematch against the Warriors on December 10, and then a Lakers/Clippers back-to-back to close the trip on December 12 and 13. That gauntlet gives way to a seven-game homestand that includes a two-game series against Orlando, the Indiana Pacers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Milwaukee Bucks on Christmas (a 5:00 tip), Houston, and the Clippers. There are some cupcakes in there, so this could end up being a nice finish after a tough start.
January is very road-heavy, with a Denver/OKC/Dallas/San Antonio trip to start the month. There are 10 road games in January, with just five at home. Zion Williamson and the Pelicans are in Boston January 11, and LeBron James and the Lakers are here on the 28th. There are two back-to-backs in the month.
The Celics play six of eight at home in February before the All-Star break, and they come out of that on the road. Ja Morant and the Grizzlies are in town for a Sunday, 2:00 PM matinee on the 12th. There is Milwaukee on the road/Detroit at home back-to-back (the third game in four nights) before the break -- that Detroit game has danger written all over it. I might just pencil that in for a 25 point loss.
March will be an interesting month. They start off with four of five at home against Cleveland, Brooklyn, New York, at Cleveland on a back-to-back, and Portland, so depending on the season goes, that could be an easy stretch. Then they head out for a six game road trip against Atlanta, Houston, Minnesota, a back-to-back against Portland and Utah (a tough one due to Utah’s altitude), and Sacramento. The finish the month with a Milwaukee/Utah road/home back-to-back.
The schedule rounds out in April with the final back-to-back at Philly and Toronto at home. That's part of a mini-series with the Raptors with Atlanta as the finale. Three games against division opponents and five of the final six against Eastern Conference opponents could make playoff positioning an important storyline to finish the season.
So looking at the 13 back-to-backs, there is a lot of opportunity to get guys rest against possibly mediocre or worse opponents. Of course, like the one against Detroit I mentioned, nothing is guaranteed, but for a team looking to ramp up a little more slowly, sitting guys against Orlando, New York, Detroit, Utah, and Brooklyn (depending on their post-trade situation), could prove valuable. New York, Orlando, Brooklyn, and Washington are also the front-end of other back-to-backs, so the scheduling gods might be smiling on Boston right now.
I know this is where everyone likes to make the Larry Bird ‘41 at home, 41 on the road, looks good’ jokes, but it looks like the schedule might skew ever so slightly in Boston’s favor at first glance.
According to the Celtics, there will be celebrations of Bill Russell’s life and legacy throughout the year. In a release, the Celtics said “beginning on October 18 against longtime division rival Philadelphia 76ers, the C’s will host the first of two dedicated Bill Russell tribute games celebrating the Celtics legend with a series of special activities. That night, the Celtics will unveil a special Bill Russell tribute 2022-23 City Edition uniform – a project that the league and team had been collaborating on with Russell himself in recent years - which they will wear a total of 12 times this season (six at home and six on the road). The Celtics will host the second tribute night on February 12, Russell’s birthday, against the Memphis Grizzlies.”
The season officially begins on October 18. That's almost exactly two months away. This is right around the corner, folks.