Boston is 5-1 with a 10.1 net mark, and its best player is producing through free throws rather than threes. Paul George's absence in Houston tests how much of that holds up without him.
The defense is doing most of the work.
Through six games Boston scores 117.7 and allows 107.6, a gap of 10.1, at a pace of 99.4. The defensive figure is the steadier claim, because it does not depend on a hot shooting week. Six games is a small sample. The 125-124 win over Brooklyn counts the same as the wider margins, and the net mark does not separate them.
Tatum is scoring without his jumper.
Tatum averages 28.3 points in 35.6 minutes this season, yet shoots 24.4 percent from three. At Orlando he scored 32 on 8-19 shooting, with 1-5 from three and 15-17 at the line. CelticsBlog reported that he was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week for the 14th time. Six games cannot say whether the shooting will recover or whether the line is now doing the work. They do say the offense has not needed his three-point shot yet.
George's absence costs minutes before it costs wins.
By our count Boston is 49 minutes short today: George at 30.9 a game and Devin Carter at 18.4. George is listed out for rest with an estimated return of 2026-11-04, and MassLive reported he was downgraded on the injury report. Against Orlando the bench scored 32 and the starters 76, and Garza added 12 points in 21 minutes at +11. Pritchard shot 0-7 from three in that game and still averages 15.0 points this season. One road win does not show the rotation holds against a Houston team at 121.2 offensively.
The 68-14 pace is arithmetic, not a forecast.
The record projects to 68-14 with 76 games left, and Boston sits third at 5-1. Four of the next five games are on the road, at Houston, Charlotte, Milwaukee and Philadelphia. The projection only multiplies six games by thirteen. It says the start is good and nothing about how Boston absorbs a week without its second star.
Who is out for the Celtics against the Rockets?
Paul George is listed out for rest, with an estimated return of 2026-11-04. Devin Carter is out with illness and is estimated back 2026-11-08.
How good are the Celtics this season?
Boston is 5-1 with a 10.1 net mark across six games, built on a 107.6 defensive mark. The sample is small, so the figure describes the start rather than the season.
