11/23/12: Celtics vs. Thunder Stat Pack

*Oklahoma City has 4 players in the Top 25 of plus/minus during the 2012-13 season. Kobe Bryant leads the league at +131. Pau Gasol and Carmelo Anthony are tied for 2^nd at +111.
–4^th: Kevin Durant (+108)
–10^th: Kevin Martin (+86)
–13^th: Russell Westbrook (+75)
–Tied-22^nd: Serge Ibaka (+57)

*Oklahoma City has the 2^nd best effective field goal percentage (53.3%) this season in the NBA.
–Boston ranks 7^th (51.3%).

*While the teams are somewhat similar with regard to offensive shooting percentage, their defenses are nowhere close. The opponent effective field goal percentage (opp. EFG%) for 2012-13 is a perfect illustration.
–Thunder: 5^th lowest opp. EFG% in NBA (46.7%)
–Celtics: 4^th highest opp. EFG% in NBA (50.4%)

*Oklahoma City averages 17.0 fastbreak points per game this season, which ranks 3^rd in the NBA.
–The Thunder’s fastbreak efficiency (2.32 fastbreak points per possession) is the 2^nd best in the league.

*The Celtics are 3-1 on 1-day rest this season.
–Their lone loss on 1-day rest was 2 weeks ago to the Philadelphia 76ers on November 9.

*The Celtics are 0-2 thus far this season on Friday nights this season. Both games have been played at home.
–November 2 vs. Bucks
–November 9 vs. 76ers

*The Celtics remain one of 6 NBA teams yet to lose a game in which they have had a halftime lead.
–Celtics are 3-0 after leading at the half. The Celtics’ 3 halftime leads are tied for the 2^nd-fewest in the league.
–The Warriors and Clippers have the most halftime leads without a loss (6).

*Milestone Watch:

–Chris Wilcox is 2 defensive rebounds away from 2,000 for his career–

–Celtics History: All-Time Field Goals Made–
2. Larry Bird 8,591
3. Robert Parish 7,483
4. Paul Pierce 7,479                        (Pierce needs 5 to move into 3^rd place)

–Celtics History: All-Time Assists–
5. Paul Pierce 3,970
6. Jo Jo White 3,686
7. Rajon Rondo 3,669                        (Rondo needs 18 to move into 6^th place)

–All-Time Free Throws Made–
12. Reggie Miller 6,237
13. Bob Pettit 6,182
14. Paul Pierce 6,165                        (Pierce needs 18 to move into 13^th place)

–Celtics History: All-Time Blocked Shots–
3. Larry Bird 755
4. Kendrick Perkins 646
5. Paul Pierce 642                        (Pierce needs 5 to move into 4^th place)
—            —            —            —            —            —            —            —            —
8. Cedric Maxwell 378
9. Tony Battie 369
10. Kevin Garnett 343                        (Garnett needs 27 to move into 9^th place)

–Celtics History: All-Time Steals–
1. Larry Bird 1,556
2. Paul Pierce 1,516                        (Pierce needs 41 to move into 1^st place)
3. Robert Parish 873
4. Rajon Rondo 864                        (Rondo needs 10 to move into 3^rd place)

11/21/12: Celtics vs. Spurs Stat Pack

*A happy 57^th birthday to the one and only, Boston Celtics radio broadcaster Cedric Maxwell!
–He shares a birthday with Stan Musial (92 today), Earl “The Pearl” Monroe (68), Harold Ramis (68), Goldie Hawn (67), Troy Aikman (46), Ken Griffey Jr. (43) and Michael Strahan (41).

*Both the Celtics and Spurs are in the top 6 in the NBA in team assist/turnover ratio.
–1^st: Knicks (1.87)
–2^nd: Celtics (1.74)
–3^rd: Heat (1.69)
–4^th: Bucks (1.68)
–5^th: Raptors (1.622)
–6^th: Spurs (1.618)

*Coming into Wednesday’s game, the Celtics are 2-0 this season on Wednesday nights (both at home).

*Coming into Wednesday’s game, the Celtics have only played one out-of-conference game, the fewest out-of-conference games in the NBA.

*Before Sunday’s game against the Detroit Pistons, the Celtics were 4-0 with the starting lineup of Rajon Rondo, Jason Terry, Paul Pierce, Brandon Bass, Kevin Garnett.
–They are now 4-1 with that lineup.
–Rondo/Lee/Pierce/Sullinger/Garnett: 2-1
–Rondo/Lee/Pierce/Bass/Garnett: 0-2
–Barbosa/Terry/Pierce/Bass/Garnett: 0-1

Wednesday’s game between the Celtics and Spurs features the 2 active leaders in all-time double-doubles.
–1^st: Tim Duncan 737
–2^nd: Kevin Garnett 719

*Rondo is now 5 of 15 (.333) from 3-point this season. His career-high for 3PM in a season is 17 in 2009-10. His career-high for 3P% in a season is .313 in 2008-09.

*The Celtics have won 2 in a row at home after losing 2 of their first 3 home games to start the season.

*The Celtics remain one of 8 NBA teams yet to lose a game in which they have had a halftime lead.
–Celtics are 3-0 after leading at the half.
–The Warriors and Clippers have the most halftime leads without a loss (6).

*Milestone Watch:

–Chris Wilcox is 5 defensive rebounds away from 2,000 for his career–

–Celtics History: All-Time Defensive Rebounds–
6. Antoine Walker 3,463
7. Cedric Maxwell 2,405
8. Kevin Garnett 2,403            (Garnett needs 3 to move into 7^th place)

–Celtics History: All-Time Field Goals Made–
2. Larry Bird 8,591
3. Robert Parish 7,483
4. Paul Pierce 7,473                        (Pierce needs 11 to move into 3^rd place)

–Celtics History: All-Time Assists–
5. Paul Pierce 3,968
6. Jo Jo White 3,686
7. Rajon Rondo 3,654                        (Rondo needs 33 to move into 6^th place)

–Celtics History: All-Time Blocked Shots–
3. Larry Bird 755
4. Kendrick Perkins 646
5. Paul Pierce 641                        (Pierce needs 6 to move into 4^th place)
—            —            —            —            —            —            —            —            —
8. Cedric Maxwell 378
9. Tony Battie 369
10. Kevin Garnett 341                        (Garnett needs 29 to move into 9^th place)

–Celtics History: All-Time Steals–
1. Larry Bird 1,556
2. Paul Pierce 1,515                        (Pierce needs 42 to move into 1^st place)
3. Robert Parish 873
4. Rajon Rondo 862                        (Rondo needs 12 to move into 3^rd place)

–All-Time Free Throws Made–
12. Reggie Miller 6,237
13. Bob Pettit 6,182
14. Paul Pierce 6,159                        (Pierce needs 24 to move into 13^th place)

11/18/12: Celtics @ Pistons Stat Pack

*In the 2012-13 seasons, the Celtics are 4-0 with the starting lineup of Rajon Rondo, Jason Terry, Paul Pierce, Brandon Bass, Kevin Garnett.

*Via Elias: Rajon Rondo is the 1st player in NBA history to have at least 121 assists and 30 or fewer turnovers in his first 9 games of a season.
*Rondo’s 20 assists on Saturday against the Raptors are a big reason why the Celtics have the most assists per possession in the NBA this season.
–1^st: Celtics (.264)
–2^nd: Spurs (.263)
–3^rd: Bucks (.250)

*The Detroit Pistons have lost all 3 of their home games this season coming into the game with the Celtics.

*Shockingly, Chris Wilcox (117 minutes played) leads the Celtics in plus/minus this season at +33.
–2^nd: Rondo (+31) – 343 MP
–3^rd: Garnett (+28) – 289 MP
–4^th: Terry (+18) – 257 MP

*Only 4 Pistons players have a positive plus/minus this season and 3 of them have played less than 10 minutes each.
–The only Pistons rotation player that has a positive plus/minus is Corey Maggette (+3 in 2 GP and 36 MP in 2012-13).
–Kyle Singler is the next best Piston at -2 in 234 MP.

*The Celtics remain one of 8 NBA teams yet to lose a game in which they have had a halftime lead.
–Celtics are 3-0 after leading at the half.
–The Warriors and Clippers have the most halftime leads without a loss (5).

11/17/12: Celtics vs. Raptors Stat Pack

*After winning the first 16 of 18 games against the Raptors in the New Big Three Era, the Celtics surprisingly have lost their last 2 meetings with Toronto.
–Both of those 2 recent losses were road games for the Celtics.

*I’m not saying today’s game against the Raptors should be an easy victory for the Celtics, but it is helpful that the Raptors’ raw rebounding rate (.472, 28^th in NBA) is worse than that of the Celtics (.478, 23^rd).

*Rajon Rondo is the Celtics’ 3^rd-most important plus/minus player at +12 this season.
–As always, Kevin Garnett is the team’s leader in plus/minus at +23.
–In 2011-12, Garnett’s +266 led the Celtics.
–While Garnett did not lead the Celtics in overall plus/minus in the seasons before 2011-12, he did however lead the team in plus/minus per minute.

*The 3-man combination of Rajon Rondo, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett is the 5^th best plus/minus one in the league at +61.
–Best in the NBA: Kobe Bryant, Metta World Peace and Pau Gasol at +91.

*In the New Big Three Era, the Celtics have a 22-14 record without Rajon Rondo playing.
–2012-13 … 0-1
–2011-12 … 8-5
–2010-11 … 9-5
–2009-10 … 1-0
–2008-09 … 0-2
–2007-08 … 4-1

*The Celtics are one of 8 NBA teams yet to lose a game in which they have had a halftime lead.
–Celtics are 2-0 after leading at the half, but the Celtics are tied for the 2^nd-fewest halftime leads (2) in the NBA. Only the Wizards have fewer (1).
–The Golden State Warriors have the most halftime leads without a loss (5).

*Around the NBA: The standings have an interesting look today. 10 of the Eastern Conference teams have a streak of at least one win. However, only 6 of the Western Conference teams have won their last game.

*Milestone Watch:

–All-Time Games Played–
17. Terry Porter 1,274
18. John Havlicek 1,270
19. Kevin Garnett 1,264            (Garnett needs 7 to move into 18^th place)

11/15/12: Celtics @ Nets Stat Pack

*The Celtics have a 17-2 record against the Nets in the New Big Three Era. Since 2007-08, the .895 winning percentage is the best one for the Celtics against any of the NBA teams that they faced at least 10 times in that span.

*Can Jeff Green have another great performance on Thursday night? If he scores at least 15 points against the Nets, he will have his first back-to-back 15-point nights since March 16-18, 2011.
–In Green’s 34 career games in a Celtics uniform, that is the only instance in which he has scored at least 15 points in consecutive games.

*Since being traded by the Celtics in 2002, Joe Johnson has a 14-13 career regular season record against his former team.
–The Joe Johnson Trade (February 20, 2002): Celtics traded Joe Johnson, Randy Brown, Milt Palacio and a 2002 1st round draft pick (Casey Jacobsen) to the Phoenix Suns for Tony Delk and Rodney Rogers.

*The Celtics entered Wednesday’s game with the 3^rd best Defensive Rebounding % (.769) in the NBA. They are now 8^th with a .747 Defensive Rebounding % after giving up 18 offensive rebounds to the Jazz and grabbing only 29 defensive rebounds of their own.

*The Celtics record on the second night of back-to-backs this season: 2-0 (both on road)
–First night of back-to-backs: 1-2 (all 3 games at home)

*Milestone Watch:

–All-Time Games Played–
17. Terry Porter 1,274
18. John Havlicek 1,270
19. Kevin Garnett 1,263            (Garnett needs 8 to move into 18^th place)

11/14/12: Celtics vs. Jazz Stat Pack

*On Monday night against the Chicago Bulls, @LucidSportsFan pointed out to me that Rajon Rondo led the Celtics in points (20), rebounds (9), assists (10) and steals (5) without any ties, so I took a look at how often Rondo has achieved this feat in his NBA career.
–In Rondo’s 536 combined regular season and postseason games, only twice (including Monday) has he led the Celtics in those 4 statistical categories without any ties in the same game.
–The other game: Game 6 of the 2009 Eastern Conference Finals (83-75 Magic victory over the Celtics) – Rondo had 19 points, 16 rebounds, 6 assists and 4 steals
–What this means to me: We all knew that this was Rondo’s team, but now he is showing it statistically. I would guess that we will see more of these such games from him in the 2012-13 season.

*Rajon Rondo was very close to his 24^th career (regular season and playoffs) triple-double. He still has 23 career triple-doubles, 18 of which have happened on national television.

*The Celtics now have a 3-1 road record and 1-2 home road. While it is early in the season, I thought it would be fun to find the times when the Celtics finished a season with a better winning percentage on the road than at home.
–There are only 2 instances in the Celtics’ first 66 seasons that they finished the season with a better road winning percentage than home winning percentage:
1. 1974-75: 28-13 at home … 32-9 on road … Celtics lost in Eastern Conference Finals
2. 2009-10: 24-17 at home … 26-15 on road … Celtics lost in NBA Finals

*The Celtics are attempting for their first 3-game winning streak of the season. The team’s last such streak was their 3 straight wins over the Miami Heat in the 2012 Eastern Conference Finals.

*Both the Celtics (4-3) and Jazz (4-4) are 3-0 this season when leading at the end of the 3^rd Quarter and 1-3 when behind at the end of the 3^rd Quarter (Utah’s other loss: tied at end of the 3^rd Quarter).
–The Celtics are 2-0 this season when ahead at halftime.
–Last season, the Celtics were the last NBA team to lose a game with a halftime lead. They started the 2011-12 season 10-0 when leading at halftime. It took the Celtics until their 25^th game last season (88-87 loss to Lakers) to end the streak.

*Oddly, the Celtics have fared worse on the first night of back-to-backs this season than they have on the second night. Tonight, they begin their third back-to-back of the season and all three will have begun at home and ended on the road.
–First night of back-to-backs: 0-2 (both at home)
–Second night of back-to-backs: 2-0 (both on road)

*Milestone Watch:

–All-Time Offensive Rebounds–
22. Elton Brand 3,050
23. Shawn Kemp 3,026
24. Kevin Garnett 3,017            (Garnett needs 10 to move into 23^rd place)

11/12/12: Celtics @ Bulls Stat Pack

*After playing 6 games, the Celtics have the 5^th-best 4^th Quarter margin (+2.2 points per game) in the NBA while having the 11^th-worst scoring margin (-2.83) in the league overall.
–In the New Big Three Era, the Celtics have never finished in the top 5 in 4^th Quarter margin.

*The Celtics are now 2-0 on the 2^nd night of back-to-backs this season.
–Those 2 victories have impressively been on the road.

*Last season, the Celtics were 12-9 on no rest.
–Last season, when the Celtics were at home on no rest, their record was 8-0.
–Last season, when the Celtics were on the road on no rest, their record was 4-9.

*The Celtics average the 3^rd most points per fastbreak possession (2.2) in the NBA this season after finishing in the bottom 10 in the league the last 2 seasons.
1^st in 2012-13: Thunder (2.5)
2^nd in 2012-13: Mavericks (2.4)

*Around the NBA: Before Sunday night’s game against the Miami Heat, the most three-pointers made by the Memphis Grizzlies in a game this season was just 6.
–In 27 minutes off the bench, Wayne Ellington made 7 three-pointers by himself on Sunday.
–The Grizzlies made 14 three-pointers as a team, the most by the franchise in a game since April 2, 2008 when Memphis hit 15 three-pointers against the Knicks.

*Milestone Watch:

–All-time Points Scored–
16. Patrick Ewing 24,815
17. Allen Iverson 24,368
18. Kevin Garnett 24,366            (Garnett needs 3 to move into 17^th place)

–All-Time Three-Pointers Made–
7. Dale Ellis 1,719
8. Rashard Lewis 1,700            (Lewis needs 20 to move into 7^th place)
9. Paul Pierce 1,691                        (Pierce needs 10 to move into 8^thplace)


–All-Time Offensive Rebounds–
22. Elton Brand 3,050
23. Shawn Kemp 3,026
24. Kevin Garnett 3,017            (Garnett needs 10 to move into 23^rd place)