The Celtics play five times between October 30 and November 6, and their only back-to-back comes on the road, in Orlando and Houston. Chicago comes first at 1-4 and short on rest, but a 35-point win four days ago tells you little about a Cup game.
Friday's game against Chicago carries the most weight this week.
Friday at home is the Emirates NBA Cup group-stage opener, so this game counts for more than Monday's rout did. The Bulls are 1-4, have dropped three in a row, and allow 121.7 points per 100 possessions. They also play at 107.4 possessions a game, far faster than Boston's 100.0. Caleb Wilson averages 20.8 points, Norman Powell 21.6, and Josh Giddey runs the offense with 8.0 assists. Nic Claxton (hamstring) and Dailyn Swain (back) are out. Boston has had two idle days. Chicago gets one after playing three times in the prior week and travels for this one. Five games is a thin sample for any rating, and the 134-99 result is one night of shooting, not a measure of the gap.
The road pair is where the week can tip.
Boston plays at Orlando on November 1 and at Houston the next night. Those are the first consecutive days on the schedule since the opener. Jayson Tatum is averaging 36.1 minutes. Paul George, 36, is at 31.4. Both workloads become a real question across those 24 hours. CelticsBlog's Bill Sy took up back-to-backs and sports science this week, a sign the topic is already on fans' minds. How Joe Mazzulla handles the second night has not been announced.
Milwaukee and Charlotte close the week with the roster nearly intact.
The Bucks visit on November 4, and the trip ends at Charlotte on November 6. Devin Carter remains out with an illness, with an estimated return of November 8, so he misses the whole stretch. Derrick White was briefly listed for a hip issue on October 27 and cleared the same day. Hoops Rumors reported that Boston exercised its options on Baylor Scheierman and Hugo Gonzalez.
A 62-win pace is arithmetic, not evidence.
At 3-1, Boston projects to 62-20, and its net rating sits at 8.6. Four games cannot hold either number up. Tatum is scoring 28.0 a night while making 24.1 percent of his threes. Payton Pritchard is at 47.6 percent and Sam Hauser at 50.0. Some of those percentages will rise and some will fall, and nobody can say which ones yet. Five games in eight days will reveal more than the opening week did, though still not much.
When do the Celtics play the Bulls in the NBA Cup?
Friday, October 30, at home. It is the group-stage opener for both teams, four days after Boston won the first meeting 134-99.
Do the Celtics have a back-to-back this week?
Yes, and both games are on the road: Orlando on November 1, then Houston on November 2.
