The Boston Celtics are better than the Eastern Conference expected so far.

Without Jayson Tatum, the Celtics have been off to a 15-9 start to the season. They are third in the conference, trailing the New York Knicks and the Detroit Pistons.

Many considered the 2025-2026 NBA season to be a gap year for the Celtics. Tatum is out for at least most of the season as he recovers from an Achilles injury.

Meanwhile, the team needed to make cost-cutting moves, dealing away Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis, two key members of the Celtics’ most recent championship squad.

The idea was that the Celtics could find themselves struggling to miss the playoffs this season. So, they wouldn’t make any win-now moves. Instead, they are exceeding expectations, which sort of shifts the mock trade landsc

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