Celtics Disrespected in Surprise New East Power Ranking

The Boston Celtics have had an offseason like no other. Boston has undergone a ton of changes, and because of that, they won't be as dominant as they've become accustomed to being. 

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The Celtics have lost four players to trades and free agency, and on top of that, they will be without their superstar forward, Jayson Tatum, for most, if not all, the 2025-26 season. 

Not too many people are giving the Celtics a ton of respect as the season approaches, including the latest NBA Eastern Conference offseason power ranking. According to John Schuhmann of NBA.com, the Celtics are outside of the top 10, ranking them at 12 in their conference, as we are a little over two months away from the start of the regular season. 

"The Celtics could set another record for 3-point rate, creating high variance from game to game and quarter to quarter. But the quality of those looks will certainly go down without Jayson Tatum’s creation and with opposing defenses able to help off of pieces of the rotation more than they could in years past. It’s a gap year, but it shouldn’t be a wasted one, with Baylor Scheierman (the 30th pick in last year’s draft) the key young guy who could take advantage of the opportunity that the Celtics’ step backward will provide." 

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Last season, the Celtics proved why they were the defending champions. Boston was dominant all season long, ranking second in offensive rating (119.5), fourth in defensive rating (110.1) and second in net rating (+9.4). 

While that was the case, this season is a new one and they will look for many of their current players to fill roles they aren't accustomed to. 

Boston lost players like Jrue Holiday, Kristaps Porzingis, Luke Kornet and Al Horford. Those four players were key to the Celtics' success, and they did not receive enough to fill that void. 

Those losses and playing without Tatum for this season will certainly hamper their chances of competing this upcoming season. Nonetheless, the Celtics still have players like Jaylen Brown, Payton Pritchard, Derrick White and Sam Hauser to carry the load and compete in the lowly Eastern Conference. 

Boston may not have the expectations they've become accustomed to, but they could surprise a ton of people with those four players and head coach Joe Mazzulla. 

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