The Celtics get back to TD Garden on Monday night with their record sitting at 1-1, and the matchup on deck comes against a Bulls team that has already shown one glaring problem. Chicago has started 1-2, and the shot that’s betraying them most is the 3-pointer.
Through three games, the Bulls are hitting just 26.2% from beyond the arc. They’re still firing away, too, taking the fourth-most 3s in the league at 41.3 per game.
The volume is there. The results haven’t been.
Boston has already seen two very different tests to open the season, dropping one against the Detroit Pistons before beating the New York Knicks. Now the Celtics shift to a Chicago roster that looks nothing like the one they faced a year ago.
The Bulls’ early offense has been driven by rookie Caleb Wilson, who is averaging 22.3 points per game. He’s doing damage on the other end as well, with 2.0 steals and 1.3 blocks per contest. Norman Powell, added in free agency this summer, has also been a key piece, while Matas Buzelis and Jalen Smith have been logging heavy minutes.
Chicago’s current roster is the product of a busy overhaul. Coby White is now with the Charlotte Hornets, Nikola Vucevic is with the Orlando Magic after a stop in Boston, and Ayo Dosunmu is on the Minnesota Timberwolves. All three were part of the Bulls’ lone win over the Celtics last season.
That was one of the only shared points of reference between these teams a year ago, because the personnel has changed so much on both sides. Boston went 2-1 against Chicago last season, and the Celtics’ only loss came on a Kevin Huerter game-winner. Huerter is no longer in Chicago, and Boston already faced him this season in Detroit.
The Bulls kept making moves after that, selecting Wilson with the No. 4 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. They also brought in Powell in free agency, traded for Nicolas Claxton, and added Buddy Hield. Claxton, though, has been out to start the season.
One Celtics wrinkle to keep an eye on tonight is a play that could matter a lot more as the season unfolds: the pick-and-roll pairing between Jayson Tatum and Mitchell Robinson. Against the Knicks, that action created real problems. New York didn’t want to give Tatum room, so Karl-Anthony Towns came all the way up to the 3-point line, which opened space for Robinson to roll.
Even after OG Anunoby cut off Robinson at the rim, the play still turned into a win for Boston because Robinson was able to secure the offensive rebound and finish the put-back. That kind of sequence is exactly why this partnership could become such an important part of the Celtics’ offense.
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Celtics Get A Chance To Expose One Early Bulls Weakness
The Celtics are about to get an early look at one of Chicagos most obvious problems, and it comes in an area Boston usually likes to stress anyway. Through the first stretch of the season, the Bulls have had a hard time making shots from deep, which makes this matchup a chance for the Celtics to close out hard, contest cleanly and see whether Chicago can generate offense some other way.
For Boston, that kind of test matters because the Bulls are still willing to launch from outside, even if the results have been rough. If the Celtics can turn those attempts into a night of rushed looks and missed opportunities, they could help determine whether Chicagos perimeter issues are just a small-sample slump or something more troubling. [Read more 🡒]
Luka Garza Just Gave Celtics Fans A Real Reason To Trust Him
Luka Garza got a real run in Bostons home opener against the Knicks, and he made it hard to ignore him. With the Celtics other centers slowed by foul trouble, Garza logged significant minutes and gave the front line a lift with a timely three, defensive stops and work on the offensive glass in a 107-103 win that had plenty of swing moments.
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Kevin Garnett Just Added A Wild Twist To How Boston Landed Him
Kevin Garnetts path to Boston already carried plenty of league lore, but he added another layer in a recent interview by revisiting just how close he came to ending up elsewhere. After years in Minnesota, Garnett said he was ready for a change and credited Chauncey Billups with pushing him to move on, a conversation that helped set the stage for one of the most important roster swings in Celtics history. What followed was a trip to Boston that changed the franchises trajectory and eventually ended with a title in 2008.
Garnett also said he weighed the fit carefully before making his choice, including reaching out for perspective on how things might work with Paul Pierce. The final decision came in a period when the Lakers were also in the picture, which makes the twist all the more striking in hindsight, especially given how his bond with Kobe Bryant later remained respectful and warm. Garnett was inducted into the Hall of Fame with Bryant in 2021, a fitting cap to a rivalry that never turned personal even as the path to Boston took an unexpected turn. [Read more 🡒]