The Boston Celtics currently have 60 wins with just one game left to play. They have been especially proficient on the road this season, finishing tied for the third-best winning percentage on the road in NBA history.
That leaves them sitting behind only the 1995-96 Bulls and the 2015-16 Warriors, who both went on to win the NBA championship. That is a great sign for the Celtics to also potentially win the championship in 2025.
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Being a good road team in the playoffs is extremely important for any champion because that increases your odds of winning each series. Every series at its maximum has four home games and three road games, so any team that can win both at home and on the road has a good chance of winning the title.
The Celtics on paper, even without that statistical trend, have a great chance to win the title. Their main competition seems to be the Cleveland Cavaliers in the East and the Oklahoma City Thunder in the West.
Looking at the net rating, the Thunder are easily the best team with a 12.7 net rating, while the Celtics and Cavs are behind them with 9.4. The next highest teams are the LA Clippers and the Minnesota Timberwolves who each have a 4.9 rating.
The Celtics have actually been a pretty weak team at home, something that differentiates them from the Thunder and Cavs record-wise.
That is an interesting differentiator from them and the 95-96 Bulls and 15-16 Warriors as well, as each of those teams broke the respective wins record at the time. If the Celtics want the trend of great road teams winning the championship to continue, they need to be better at home.
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The Thunder are just behind the Celtics in road win percentage with 79.5%. That makes them an extra scary team for the Celtics if the two were to face off in the NBA finals. Both teams are led by superstars, have good secondary star players, and overall solid depth and balance that should help them reach the finals.
If going solely based on past seasons and road-winning percentages, the Celtics seem like the top favorite to win the title, with the Thunder being the team with the best chance to stand in their way. Besides the Cavaliers at 73.2% win percentage on the road, the next best team is only at 58.5%, further proof that the top three teams record-wise are a step above the rest of the NBA.
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