2020 NBA restart: Celtics enter Orlando with historically potent offense

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It's almost time to get down to business.

The Boston Celtics are traveling to Orlando on Wednesday to enter the NBA "bubble" and gear up for the restarted 2019-20 season, which they'll resume July 31 against the Milwaukee Bucks.

The Celtics are the current No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference and are expected to be a serious NBA championship contender.

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What makes the C's so dangerous, you ask? After a four-month layoff, it's worth a refresher. And the answer all starts with their offense.

Consider this stat: Boston heads to Orlando averaging 113 points per game, which would be its highest scoring average in 33 years, since the 1987-88 campaign.

In fact, only 15 Celtics teams in the franchise's 74-year history have scored 113 points or more per game.

But more impressive than the Celtics' scoring output is their scoring depth. The C's are the only team in the NBA with three players averaging more than 20 points per game: Jayson Tatum, (23.6 per game) Kemba Walker (21.2 per game) and Jaylen Brown (20.4 per game).

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The last time Boston had three 20-point scorers was 53 years ago, when Sam Jones, John Havlicek and Bailey Howell powered the 1966-67 Celtics. Add Gordon Hayward and his 17.4 points per game, and the Celtics have four elite offensive weapons.

That may explain why the C's lead the NBA in second-half offensive rating (116.2) and rank second in the NBA in fourth-quarter scoring (28.6) behind only the Milwaukee Bucks.

Of course, offense alone doesn't win championships. But the Celtics are also well-equipped on the defensive end. In fact, they're one of only three teams in the NBA's top five in both offensive and defensive rating.

The other two? The NBA title hopeful Los Angeles Lakers and Clippers.

All bets are off in the NBA bubble, as success may be determined by which teams stay healthy and best adapt to an unprecedented situation.

But the Celtics were hitting their stride when the NBA paused its season in March, and if they can pick up where they left off, they could be one of the last "bubble" teams standing.

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