The Celtics are heading into the 2026-27 season with a very different feel, and the projection industry is already trying to pin down where Boston belongs in the league pecking order. With a new season set to begin on Tuesday, October 20, and the Celtics opening in the afternoon, the big question is how this reshaped roster holds up from day one through the playoff push.
Jayson Tatum is now the face of the team after Jaylen Brown was traded to the 76ers, and that move brought Paul George to Boston. The Celtics also added Mitchell Robinson and Mike Conley, giving the roster a new look around Tatum.
That leaves plenty to sort through, starting with whether Tatum can stay healthy for an entire season and continuing to what Payton Pritchard can do after landing a new deal. The biggest question of all remains the same: how far can this team go in the playoffs?
The forecast from ESPN lands Boston at No. 6 in its power rankings. ESPN pegs the Celtics for 51.3 wins and gives them a 97.2% shot at reaching the playoffs.
The only reason that number is not a perfect 100% is the uncertainty tied to the Jaylen Brown trade. ESPN expects Tatum to get back to his All-NBA level after the Achilles injury, and it sees three-point shooting as a major strength.
Free-throw rate, though, is listed as a possible weakness.
The Sporting News is even higher on Boston, slotting the Celtics at No. 3.
Its projection has the team finishing 54-28, which would be two fewer wins than last season. Steph Noh sees Paul George as an ideal fit in Joe Mazzulla’s system and points to Mitchell Robinson as perhaps the most underrated addition on the roster.
The Athletic also places the Celtics at No. 6, and its view is that there’s no doubt Boston will host a playoff game. Law Murray believes the Celtics remain in good shape despite losing Brown. For him, the biggest things to watch are how Boston handles the possession battle and what Tatum looks like now that he is clearly the team’s leader.
theScore is lower on the Celtics, ranking them No. 10. Even so, it was encouraged by the early teamwork between Tatum and Robinson, though in a small sample. theScore also sees Robinson, who helped the Knicks win the NBA Finals, as a strong fit.
Yahoo Sports splits the difference in its own way, placing Boston at No. 9.
Its best-case scenario has the Celtics earning the No. 1 seed, while the worst case puts them at the sixth seed. Yahoo says the production level from a hopefully healthy Paul George and Tatum will be worth tracking, along with the question of who gets leaned on more between Neemias Queta and Mitchell Robinson.
In Other News...
Celtics Already Have A Payton Pritchard Problem They Promised To Fix
After the offseason trade of Jaylen Brown and a contract extension for Payton Pritchard, the Celtics entered the season with a clear expectation that his role would grow. Instead, the opener offered a familiar look. Pritchard came off the bench and was on the floor for 27 minutes, but his place in the offense never really changed in a way that suggested a new level of responsibility.
He still managed to score 17 points, tied for second on the team, but the way he got there looked more like last season than the next step Boston seemed to be promising. With limited involvement in the half-court and only one assist to show for the night, the question is already less about whether Pritchard can produce and more about how the Celtics plan to use him moving forward. [Read more 🡒]
Kendrick Perkins Just Turned Up The Pressure On The Celtics
Boston looked sharp in its first game against Detroit, a reminder that even with offseason changes, the Celtics still project as one of the leagues upper-tier teams. But the early-season vibe around this group has been complicated by the usual Boston standard: good regular-season play is expected, and the conversation always drifts quickly to whether the roster is truly built for June.
Kendrick Perkins added to that pressure with a blunt assessment of where the Celtics stand right now. The former Boston center drew a hard line between being good and being a real title threat, pointing to the roster as part of the concern and putting the spotlight squarely on Jayson Tatum in the process. For a team that has spent years being measured against championship expectations, it is the kind of outside criticism that lingers until the Celtics prove otherwise. [Read more 🡒]
Celtics Already Have A Starting Lineup Debate After Opening Loss
The Celtics opened their season with a loss to the Pistons, and it didnt take long for the first lineup question to surface. Boston got useful bench minutes from Baylor Scheierman and Sam Hauser, two forwards who brought some pop to the offense after checking in, which only sharpened the conversation about how the rotation should be shaped going forward.
There is already a case to be made for one of those shooters moving into the starting five to help create more spacing early in games, especially if the Celtics want a cleaner offensive rhythm out of the gate. The tougher part is figuring out who comes out to make room, and that decision will say plenty about how Boston wants to balance defense, energy and shot-making in the games ahead. [Read more 🡒]