BOSTON — When assessing the Boston Celtics during recent championship runs, elite defense was always the baseline. Last season, Joe Mazzulla’s squad posted the NBA’s fourth-ranked defense, yielding a suffocating 111.7 defensive rating. Yet, that success came almost entirely through solid face-up guarding, rim protection, and controlling the glass. The Boston Celtics finished 29th out of 30 teams in forcing turnovers, generating just 12.4 takeaways per game. Fast forward to the 2026–27 preseason slate, and a radical shift has taken hold, opening up the possibility that this Celtics Defense Could Be Historic.
Through three exhibition contests, Boston is forcing an astounding 21.3 turnovers per game while recording a 98.7 defensive rating. While that turnover average will inevitably normalize over an 82-game regular season, jumping from the bottom of the league to the top turns a great defense into a historic monster.
Chaos Creation With Long Wings
The primary engine behind this defensive revolution is the addition of Paul George alongside Jayson Tatum. Pairing two long, elite two-way wings allows the Boston Celtics to play aggressive passing lanes without sacrificing straight lanes to the rim. In just 48 preseason minutes across two games, Paul George has racked up 7 steals, creating immediate transition points for the offense off 5 of those forced turnovers.
The domino effect across the roster is undeniable. Derrick White and Baylor Scheierman have logged 5 steals apiece, while Spanish wing Hugo González has swiped 9 steals in three games. Meanwhile, Jayson Tatum continues to anchor team help schemes with 3 steals. Because the Boston Celtics feature zero defensive liabilities (yes Payton Pritchard is not a liability) , every single perimeter player can switch screen-and-rolls, enabling defenders to jump routes and contest shots aggressively.
- Active ball-hawking on the perimeter provides immediate transition scoring.
- Zero defensive weak links allow players to gamble on passing lanes safely.
- Forcing 21.3 turnovers per game disrupts opposing playbooks completely.
When elite wing defenders roam with this level of freedom, opposing ball-handlers find nowhere to turn.
Rim Protection And Glass Control From The Interior
While perimeter turnover creation generates highlights, the foundation of Boston’s paint defense remains completely locked down by the committee of Celtics bigs. The center rotation of Neemias Queta, Luka Garza, Chris Cenac Jr and Mitchell Robinson gives Joe Mazzulla relentless paint protection and glass dominance. Garza is not a great defender but he holds his ground despite his relatively slow foot speed.
In addition to forcing turnovers, Boston leads the preseason in total rebounding percentage (56.9%) while holding opponents to a league-best 8.0 second-chance points per game. The Celtics bigs erase opponent putbacks, ensuring that aggressive gambles on the perimeter do not result in easy baskets at the rim.
- Rebounding 77.3% of defensive boards erases second-chance points efficiently.
- Holding opponents to just 36.0 points in the paint ranks third league-wide.
- Fresh rotation bigs keep interior physicality high across all 48 minutes.
Having elite paint protection ensures that Boston’s gambling on passing lanes never exposes the backline.
Measuring Against Modern Defensive Standards
To understand why this Celtics defense could be historic, one must look at the standard set by the greatest defensive teams in modern league history. The 2003–04 Detroit Pistons posted a legendary 95.4 defensive rating, while the 1998–99 San Antonio Spurs recorded a 95.0 mark. In the modern era, the 2023–24 Oklahoma City Thunder earned widespread praise for leading the NBA with a 106.5 defensive rating.
By adding elite turnover creation to an already elite rebounding and rim-protecting foundation, this group is aiming even higher. If Boston maintains a defensive rating under 105.0 while sustaining top-five turnover creation, this Celtics defense could be historic in every statistical metric available.
Why This Unit Raises The Ceiling
The groundwork laid by Brad Stevens and Joe Mazzulla has created a perfect storm. As new rotation pieces gel and communication sharpens over the long campaign, Boston’s defensive unit will only get tighter.
With Paul George, Jayson Tatum, and a deep committee of Celtics bigs suffocating opponents at every level, the argument is no longer whether Boston has a great defense. The real question is how high this group can climb in the NBA history books.
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