TL;DR
- * The Celtics are struggling early in the 2025-26 NBA season with inconsistent play.
- * Boston is last in the NBA in free-throw percentage and opponent free throw attempts.
- * The team commits many fouls while drawing few, contributing to opponent free throws.
- * Celtics lead in three-point attempts but have a low success rate.
The Celtics' start to the 2025-26 NBA season has had its ups and downs so far, with many areas of struggle that they've had to navigate.
The team's struggles on defense and offense, coupled with inconsistent play on both sides of the ball, have made it difficult to secure victories.
Free throws have presented challenges for The Celtics on both offense and defense, leading them to be significantly the worst team in one free-throw metric this season.
Boston is last in free-throw percentage.
The Celtics rank last in the NBA in 'OPP FTA- Team FTA' over approximately six games, with opponents having shot 84 more free throws than the Celtics through their seven played contests (via StatMuse).
The Celtics have the least amount of FTA this season, with 17.6. Opponents have taken 12.0 more FTA when playing Boston this season, averaging 29.6 FTA.
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The Celtics have committed the 8th most fouls in the NBA this season, with 24.4 PF and have drawn the second fewest amount of fouls, at 18.86 PF.
In terms of 'OPP FTA- Team FTA', the second-worst team in the league in this area after the Celtics is the Wizards, with 43 fewer FTA than opponents.
This season, the Celtics have 41 fewer opponent free throws than their own team free throws, pointing to a significant issue they must address.
The Celtics' struggles with rebounding have emerged as a significant problem, confirming earlier worries about their potential size disadvantages.
This gives the opponent a lot of second-chance point opportunities and increases the likelihood of more fouls being called when players are battling for rebounds and trying to block shots under the basket.
While the Celtics frequently attempt many three-pointers, their success rate isn't high enough to secure victories. They lead the NBA in 3PA at 47.3, but are 5th worst this season with a 32.6 3P%.
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