The Boston Celtics begin this season as NBA champions. And this season, the Celtics might take the highest spot in one other league checklist.
Within the NBA’s all-time won-lost rankings, amongst energetic franchises, the San Antonio Spurs enter this season with one of the best file. However the Celtics have the chance to overhaul the Spurs for first place within the coming months.
San Antonio’s successful share is 0.596. Boston’s successful share is 0.594.
Let’s assume San Antonio is 41-41 this season. If that occurs, Boston would solely want a 47-35 rating to maneuver previous the Spurs within the all-time standings.
The Los Angeles Lakers enter the season third amongst groups all-time, with a successful share of .591, which means additionally they have a mathematical likelihood of reaching first or second place this season.
In some order, the Spurs, Celtics, and Lakers will seemingly be the highest three groups for some time. Utah enters this season ranked fourth on the all-time checklist, with a successful share of .540.
The Spurs have completed every of the final 10 seasons – from 2014-15 by 2023-24 – because the chief in successful share amongst energetic NBA groups.
Boston hasn’t completed a season atop the all-time rankings since 1996-97. The Lakers took over the next yr and held that spot for 17 seasons, earlier than San Antonio climbed to first place.
Upcoming staff milestones
Among the many staff’s common season milestones which might be inside attain this season:
—New York (26 fewer wins) and Golden State (31 fewer wins) are each closing in on 3,000 wins all-time. Solely Boston, the Lakers and Philadelphia have reached this milestone.
— Indiana wants 45 wins or extra this season to return to the all-time .500 mark. The Pacers enter this yr between 1,930 and 1,938 (so in the event that they get eight above .500 this season, they might be at .500 all-time).
—Denver has 46 wins out of two,000.
—Memphis is 2 wins out of 1,000.
—Detroit will play its 6,000th recreation in Cleveland on Friday, its second recreation of the season.
Jordan, Wilt inside attain of Luka
Dallas’ Luka Doncic averaged 33.9 factors in 70 video games final season. That pushed his profession common to twenty-eight.7 per recreation, third greatest in NBA historical past.
He might get nearer to the highest locations this season.
If Doncic replicates his numbers from final season once more in 2024-25, he’ll transfer nearer to No. 1 Michael Jordan (30.12 per recreation) and No. 2 Wilt Chamberlain (30.07 per recreation).
And if he stays on tempo from final season, he’ll cross Jordan and Chamberlain for one of the best scoring common within the 2026-27 season.
KD, 30K
Kevin Durant of the Phoenix Suns is closing in on 30,000 factors in his profession, needing 1,076 factors to achieve that milestone. He can be the eighth participant in NBA historical past to realize this.
And he can be essentially the most environment friendly 30,000 level scorer of all time.
Durant enters this season averaging 1.46 factors per shot try, which is healthier than every of the seven gamers forward of him on the all-time scoring checklist – LeBron James, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone, Kobe Bryant, Jordan, Dirk Nowitzki and Chamberlain.
His true capturing share (the superior stat that measures capturing effectivity) of 61.9% can be effectively forward of the seven gamers forward of him.
Joyful twentieth, CP3
Chris Paul enters his first season with the San Antonio Spurs and his twentieth season general. James will tie Vince Carter for seasons performed with 22, and Paul will turn out to be the eleventh participant in NBA historical past with not less than 20 seasons.
“It’s surreal, truly,” Paul stated. “It’s an unimaginable blessing. …I imply, quite a lot of my teammates are head coaches now. So, I am grateful to not solely proceed to play, however to play at a excessive degree. It is enjoyable.
Paul is #3 on the all-time assists and steals checklist. He’s inside attain of Jason Kidd, No. 2 on these two lists. Kidd retired with 12,091 assists and a pair of,684 steals; Paul enters this season with 11,894 assists and a pair of,614 steals.
Teaching Milestones
Miami’s Erik Spoelstra enters his seventeenth season as coach of the Warmth, the third-longest consecutive tenure with one staff in NBA historical past behind San Antonio’s Gregg Popovich (who enters his twenty ninth yr) and Jerry Sloan (who spent 23 seasons with Utah).
Spoelstra surpasses Crimson Auerbach, who coached Boston for 16 seasons.
Among the many different milestones at stake this yr:
— Milwaukee’s Doc Rivers is 41 wins away from tying Phil Jackson (1,155) for seventh on the all-time checklist.
—Indiana’s Rick Carlisle’s first victory this season might be his 944th, tying Invoice Fitch for eleventh all-time.
— Carlisle and Rivers are scheduled to play 4 conferences this season, which might convey their whole to 92 head-to-head video games, together with the playoffs. That may be the seventh-most coaches in NBA historical past. Gene Shue and Crimson Holzman have confronted one another 109 occasions, Rick Adelman and Sloan 104, Auerbach and Alex Hannum 100, Don Nelson and Sloan 98, Shue and Jack Ramsay 97 and Auerbach and Al Cervi 95.
—Spoelstra is 10 wins behind No. 18 Nate McMillan (760) and 34 wins behind No. 17 Shue (784).
—Mike Budenholzer of Phoenix has 16 wins out of 500.
—Popovich, the all-time wins chief, is 12 factors shy of 1,400.
Talking of Pop…
In line with Sportradar, there have been 350 all-time head coaches signed up this season. Popovich has coached towards 170 of them — practically half the roster — and is predicted so as to add not less than three extra to his all-time teaching matchup membership this season.
He’ll face JJ Redick of the Lakers for the primary time (as a coach, not less than; Redick performed 29 common season video games and 7 playoff video games towards Popovich’s Spurs) on November 15. Popovich’s first recreation towards new Brooklyn coach Jordi Fernandez might be a highway contest on December 27, and he’ll face new Charlotte coach Charles Lee for the primary time on February 7.
Transfer on
A have a look at some gamers who might climb the all-time rankings this season:
—James Harden, Los Angeles Clippers: He begins twentieth with 25,885 factors and can seemingly climb shortly towards the highest 10. With simply 826 factors this season, he would surpass No. 19 Kevin Garnett, No. 18 John Havlicek, No. 18. 17 Paul Pierce, No. 16 Tim Duncan, No. 14 Dominique Wilkins and No. 13 Oscar Robertson. Harden can be 33 factors behind No. 2 Ray Allen (2,973) on the all-time checklist.
—Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors: The all-time 3-point king has 1,332 factors out of 25,000 for his profession. He can be the tenth participant to attain that many factors with a single franchise.
— DeMar DeRozan, Sacramento Kings: He’s 1,418 factors shy of 25,000.
—Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks: The perennial MVP candidate wants 1,498 factors to achieve the 20,000 mark.
—Klay Thompson, Dallas Mavericks: He wants 19 3-pointers for two,500 in his profession.
Who’s #1? It at all times adjustments
Within the Western Convention, good luck guessing which staff will find yourself because the No. 1 seed within the playoffs.
That is unprecedented within the present playoff format: There have been seven completely different No. 1 seeds within the final seven seasons. Houston had this spot in 2018, Golden State in 2019, the Lakers in 2020, Utah in 2021, Phoenix in 2022, Denver in 2023 and Oklahoma Metropolis final season.
Westbrook 1 away from 200
Denver’s Russell Westbrook is one triple-double away from 200 in his regular-season profession. However to focus on simply how uncommon his triple-double file is — he has 69 greater than new Nuggets teammate Nikola Jokic, MVP in three of the final 4 seasons — think about these nuggets:
—Has greater than every other NBA staff besides the Lakers (211). The Nuggets have 198 for No. 2 on the checklist.
—Westbrook has extra triple-doubles than gamers from Charlotte, Orlando, Atlanta, New York, Memphis and Utah have posted in whole (190).
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