Get hyped for the 2024 playoffs by looking back at what the Celtics have been through since last season ended vs. the Heat in Game seven of the Eastern Conference Finals.
The Boston Celtics wrapped an incredible 2023-24 NBA regular season Sunday with a 132-122 win over the Washington Wizards at TD Garden.
It was a fitting end to a remarkable campaign that saw the Celtics break several league records and team records. This team ultimately will be judged by playoff success and whether it wins Banner 18 in June. But it's still OK to take a moment and look back at all this squad has accomplished on that journey so far.
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Here are some of the most notable stats, streaks, trends and numbers from a historic regular season by the Celtics. Several of these numbers and facts are from NBC Sports Boston statistician Dick Lipe and 98.5 The Sports Hub's Sean Grande.
64 wins
The Celtics finished 64-18, earning their first 60-win campaign since 2008-09 (62-20). The Celtics have won 60-plus games 14 times, and six of the first 13 of those seasons ended with a championship. The most recent example is the 2007-08 team that went 66-16.
The single-season team record for wins is 68 by the 1972-73 squad that didn't win a title.
No. 1 by a wide margin
The Celtics finished first in the Eastern Conference standings by 14 games, which is the largerst margin between No. 1 and No. 2 since 1976.
Boston also became the first team since the 2012-13 Miami Heat to win the East by 10 or more games. The Celtics clinched the league's top record before 12 teams even clinched a playoff berth.
Boston finished with a seven-win lead on the next-best team in the league -- the Oklahoma City Thunder and Denver Nuggets at 57-25. The only other team to finish seven or more games ahead of the second-place club over the last nine years was the 2020-21 Phoenix Suns (eight-win advantage), who lost in the NBA Finals.
Elite offense
The Celtics scored 1.22 points per possession, which is the best in league history. Their 122.2 offensive rating is also the best in league history.
How did the Celtics score at such an amazing rate? They hit 1,351 3-point shots, which is 12 fewer than the Golden State Warriors' single-season league record set in 2022-23.
The Celtics outscored teams by an average of 11.34 points per game, which ranks fifth in NBA history. The top four all won the title that season.
1. 1971-72 Lakers: 12.28 scoring margin
2. 1970-71 Bucks: 12.26
3. 1995-96 Bulls: 12.24
4. 2016-17 Warriors: 11.63
5. 2023-24 Celtics: 11.34
The Celtics also set league records with 17 25-point wins and 10 30-point wins, per Grande.
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Protecting home court
The Celtics began the season with a team record 20-0 start at TD Garden. They finished with a 37-4 record at home, which is the third-best mark in franchise history and the most home victories by any NBA team since the 2016-17 Spurs (40-1) and Warriors (39-2).
The Celtics' 15.22 scoring margin at home is the third-best in league history.
Will the Celtics be able to maintain their stellar homecourt play during the postseason? The C's are 11-12 at the Garden during their last two playoff runs, including a 1-3 record versus the Heat at home in the 2023 Eastern Conference Finals.
Other notable numbers
- The Celtics had the fewest road losses (14) and a league-best 12-2 record in back-to-backs. Their opponents shot just 1,182 free throws, which is the lowest total in league history.
- The Celtics set team records for offensive rating, net rating, scoring margin, 3-point shots made and fewest turnovers.
- The Celtics had three players average 20 or more points per game:
Jayson Tatum: 26.9
Jaylen Brown: 23.0
Kristaps Porzingis: 20.1
The only other Celtics team this century to have three 20-point scorers was the 2019-20 squad that had Tatum (23.4), Kemba Walker (20.4) and Brown (20.3) all over 20.
- The Celtics and Thunder were the only teams to finish top five in both offensive and defensive rating this season.
- The Celtics became the only team ever to win three games by 50 or more points in one season.
Nov. 1 vs. Pacers: 155-104
Feb. 14 vs. Nets: 136-86
March 3 vs. Warriors: 140-88
