Ramp to Camp: One bold Celtics prediction for 2026-27 season originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
Boston Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens made the boldest move of his front office tenure when he dealt away Jaylen Brown at the start of the summer. The dramatic roster shakeup adds a somewhat unique layer of volatility to how the 2026-27 season might unfold for Boston.
For the latest installment in our Ramp to Camp series, we asked our experts to harness that boldness and make one intrepid prediction about the upcoming season.
Our experts didn’t disappoint. We got six audacious suggestions, ranging from a Jayson Tatum MVP season to two first-time All-Stars to Neemias Queta emerging as a double-double machine.
The underlying theme, though, was optimism that Boston can patch things together despite the departure of a five-time All-Star, with the remaining pieces elevating their play to keep Boston competing at a familiar level.
Here’s our bold prediction: The Celtics finish atop the Eastern Conference in defensive rating this season.
The Celtics have lived in the top 5 of defensive rating the past half decade, but all the roster changes have stressed their ability to maintain that feat. While so much of the attention about Brown’s departure falls on Boston’s need to fill his offensive void, his willingness to defend elite scorers must be replaced as well.
But when we examine Boston’s roster construction, we see a team that could soar defensively, especially given some of the talent added this offseason.
Derrick White is an All-Defense stalwart; Tatum’s defense — both his rebounding and ability to contest shots with his length — has long been underrated; and Paul George remains an above-average, steal-hunting defender even at an advanced age. Neemias Queta and Mitchell Robinson could emerge as one of the best big-man defensive tandems in the entire NBA, with Robinson likely back-lining for a second unit that could deploy energetic wings like Hugo Gonzalez and Jordan Walsh to harass opposing scorers.
We wanted to be *really* bold and suggest the Celtics could have the best defense in the NBA. But Oklahoma City exists, and the Thunder had the best defensive rating in the league by more than 2 full points last season. The Spurs with Victor Wembanyama are going to live near the top of the league in defense for a long time.
But even in a beefed up East, we like the chaos potential of these Celtics. The Robinson addition, along with another season of progress from Queta, could really allow the guards and wings on this team to crank up the intensity on the perimeter.
The Celtics ranked 26th in opponent turnover rate last season (12.9%). That number should improve. Boston should be one of the best rebounding teams in the NBA and routinely limited second-chance opportunities last year. The Celtics have been elite at keeping teams off the free throw line.
It should all add up to one of the best defenses in the NBA. And while everyone obsesses about the scoring lost in Brown’s departure, the best defense in the East would certainly take some stress off Boston’s need to fill his void.
Josh Canu: Editor
Payton Pritchard will be an All-Star. For the second straight year, Pritchard will have endless opportunities to put up big numbers on this team. I think even Pritchard would agree that he came up a little short of expectations last season and I think he is primed and ready to explode this year. Jayson Tatum is going to get a lot of different looks thrown at him defensively and Pritchard will have the chance to make teams pay for that every single night.
Justin Leger: Producer, Multi-Platform Content
Derrick White gets his first career All-Star nod. I fully expect him to shake off last season’s shooting struggles, and if he does that while continuing to play elite defense, he should at least be in the conversation.
Nick Goss: Producer, Multi-Platform Content
Jayson Tatum will win MVP. He is going to be highly motivated to return to his typical All-NBA status.
Michael Hurley: Producer, Multi-Platform Content
I think their regular-season record will be worse, but I think they’ll do better in the playoffs. Jaylen Brown was excellent in leading the Celtics to the 2 seed last year, but there was no change on the roster as significant as the addition of Paul George. That chemistry is going to take some time to develop, so I don’t think the Celtics will be rolling to another 56 wins. At the same time, come April, I’m expecting at least one series win while leaving open the possibility of Tatum driving them to the conference finals.
Kevin Miller: Vice President, Content Creation & Strategy
Last year, the Celtics ranked 19th in points per game. I think this year they will be a top-10 points-per-game offense this season.
Jason Levine: Executive Producer, Content Integrations
Neemias Queta is the big that makes the biggest impact (not Mitchell Robinson). He and Tatum are a dynamic pick-and-roll duo, and Queta averages 13 points and 10 rebounds per game.
