The Boston Celtics are off to one of the best starts in NBA history at a record of 27-2. While it is still very early in the season, the Celtics can see a glimpse of history in the making. The Celtics are on pace to challenge the 1996 Chicago Bulls for the best record ever in a season. The 1996 Bulls finished their brilliant campaign with a final record of 72-10 and capped it off with an NBA Championship as well. Boston is off to a mind blowing pace through the early half of the season. The Celtics have 53 games remaining this season and the competition will likely pick up. However, if Boston could keep up similar pace they could quite possibly achieve the best season ever in the history of the NBA.

Boston is one of the most historical franchises in NBA history. The Celtics have an amazing 17 NBA Championships that is by far more than any other franchise in NBA history. Boston has established the best start in NBA history at a mark of 27-2. Only two other teams can compare to that kind of start. Both the 1966-67 Philadelphia 76ers and 1969-70 New York Knicks started their seasons 26-2. They also both went on to win NBA Championships. With last nights 110-91 victory over the 76ers, the Celtics have now won 19 straight games which equals a team record. Boston is making their claim as one of the best teams to ever take the floor in professional basketball.

Celtics’ coach Doc Rivers has done a fabulous job getting his guys to play premier defense. Despite all the offensive weapons, the Boston defensive schemes have been major reason for their success. This season the Celtics are only allowing 91.4 points per game which ranks them as the 2^nd best scoring defense in the NBA. Boston also ranks first in the NBA in defensive field goal percentage. The Celtics are only allowing opposing teams to shoot 41% from the floor on average which is by far the best in the league. The Celtics have only allowed teams to score over 100 points 7 times this season in the 30 games played. That statistic alone is pretty remarkable considering how high scoring the entire NBA has become. However, Boston has stayed with an old school type of basketball that focuses on defense first and it has paid off big time.

Offensively the Celtics are as talented as any team in the league. Unlike the Los Angeles Lakers or Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston seldom has one player stand out game in and game out. Unlike other top teams that are led by star players such as Kobe Bryant and Lebron James, the Celtics can have any of their starting five post a big night. Other teams have the stress of worrying how their start performer will play every night. When those players are off a lot of times the entire team struggles. The Celtics do not have those worries because they have a number of players who can pick up the slack on any given night. Boston is led by a trio of stars in Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, and Kevin Garnett. The Celtics average 50 points per game just between those 3 standouts. Boston benefits from having this type of talent considering when one player is off his game others will pick it up. Many teams can not afford there star players to struggle. However, Boston can play at a top level every night despite individual performances. This reason alone is why they are the most consistent team in the NBA.

Boston is on their way to accomplishing probably one of the most prestigious records a team could capture in the regular season. Boston remaining schedule will most certainly wear down the players and they are likely to lose this blistering early season pace. However, if the Celtics do stay on path they could legitimately challenge the 76’ Bulls for the best record of all-time. Boston has a huge match-up with the Los Angeles Lakers on the horizon to take place on Christmas Day. The game will mark a battle between powerhouses in effort to gain NBA supremacy. Each team will be trying to prove they are the best in the NBA and a win will go along way for each team’s confidence about where they stand in the league. If the Celtics could escape Los Angeles with a victory, the momentum could definitely last the rest of the season.

The Celtics simply have to keep similar pace in tact. Even if Boston were to lose twice as many games in their next 29 games, they would still be on pace to end the season with around 9 losses. This means that every game could be one loss or one win away from breaking the record at season’s end. So far this season Boston has faired well against the best competition in the NBA. Orlando, Cleveland, and Los Angeles have the best records in the NBA behind Boston by 5 games or more. Boston is 2-0 against these teams this season with convincing wins in both games against Orlando and Cleveland. The Celtics will get the Lakers next up the Thursday night and will try to stay perfect against the elite teams in the NBA. The Celtics appear to be headed for a probable chance at history. Unless some drastic things change, Boston will get their chance to stake claim as the best team in the history of professional basketball. Record or no record, for now sit back and watch one of the best teams to ever take the floor and applaud their strive at greatness.

The NBA basketball season is in full swing and we can start to expect which teams will be strong and which teams will struggle this season. Highlighting the new NBA season are some very familiar face a top the standings. The reigning NBA Champions the Boston Celtics own the best record in the NBA at 25-2 making them look again like the team to beat this year. Other teams like the Cleveland Cavaliers and the L.A Lakers are both off to 21-4 starts and staging themselves to be postseason factors despite how early we are in the season. On the other hand, there are also some familiar faces on the bottom side of success. Teams that have been failing to succeed have found their coaches feeling the pressure of job security and a total of 6 coaches have already lost their job in the NBA this season.

The previous record for NBA firing before the Christmas holidays was three. However, franchises desire to win are at an all-time high and they are not willing to wait for success. The 6 NBA coaches result in 20% of the NBA coaches being fired. Did they all really expect to be World Champions? The majority of these coaches were from teams that had absolutely no chance at competing anyway, but yet the decisions have still been made and change amongst the coaching ranks seems to have been the only option. Oklahoma City started off the trend back in late mid November firing coach P.J. Carlesimo. The Oklahoma City Thunder had gotten off to a league worse 1-12 start and was failing to compete with anyone. Assistant coach Scott Brooks was named interim coach with the intentions to finish the season. However, since the coaching change the Thunder are only 2-13 in their last 15 games and seem to be the exact same team no matter who is in charge thus raising the question is the problem coaching or talent?

Next in the firing line was the man leading the Washington Wizards. Head Coach Eddie Jordan was fired within 3 days of Carlesimo’s announcement after the Wizards started the season 1-10. Stepping up to the challenge was the former Director of Player Development Ed Tapscott. Jordan had led the Wizards to 4 straight playoff appearances and was 3^rd on the all-time Washington win list with 197 wins. After Jordan’s departure, there were similar results behind the new man in charge. Since the coaching change, the Wizards are 3-10 and have lost 5 straight games. Again is the coaching really the problem?

The Toronto Raptors stepped up next to deliver the disappointing news to another NBA coach. On December 3^rd, the Toronto Raptors became the 3^rd NBA team to fire their head coach when they released Sam Mitchell. Mitchell led the Raptors to an 8-9 start. Despite having made the playoffs the past two seasons and also winning the NBA Coach of the Year for the 2006-2007 season, Mitchell ran out of time to improve the team’s performance. Mitchell was perhaps the most surprising firing considering Toronto was still in position to save their season barring the need of a few wins in a row. Mitchell and the Raptor suffered a huge loss to the Denver Nuggets in the night prior to the firing where they were defeated 132-93 and that loss was the Mitchell’s last opportunity. Jay Triano took over the reigns in Toronto becoming the first ever Canadian coach in the NBA. Triano and the Raptors are now 2-7 since the change and yet another example of a change that has not worked out.

Five days later the Minnesota Timberwolves fired Coach Randy Wittman becoming the 4^th coach to be fired in two weeks. Wittman and the Timberwolves were off to an embarrassing 4-15 start and they team had lost 5 games in a row by an average of 15 points. Kevin Mchale the former Vice President of basketball operations stepped in to try to turn the young team around. Again the coaching change has done nothing for yet another franchise. The Timberwolves have lost 6 straight games since the coaching change and the troubles have gotten way worse. Again was there any change necessary?

Nearly a week later the Philadelphia 76ers would jump into the coaching trend. The 76ers fired Coach Maurice Cheeks after a sluggish 9-14 start. The firing placed Cheeks as the 5^th coach that had been fired in the first few weeks of the season. Cheeks was another coach that had made the playoffs last season and still had time to turn his team in the right direction except he would not get the chance. Assistant general manager Tony DiLeo was appointed coach for rest of the season. DiLeo. Philadelphia may be the only team to have truly benefited from the coaching change. DiLeo has led the 76ers to 3 straight wins. While it may be early in DiLeo’s coaching debut, he definitely seems to have Philadelphia on the right path and hopefully this coaching change will be one that pays off.

A mere two days later Sacramento Kings’ Coach Reggie Theus would be the final coach thrown into the fire. Theus had led the Kings to a 6-18 start and dropped 10 of his last 11 games. At the time of Theus’s firing, the Kings had not won a game in nearly a month of basketball and a coaching seemed like the only logical explanation. After all, everyone else in the NBA is doing it. Assistant Coach Kenny Natt took over the head coaching position after the Theus departure. Since that final coaching change Natt is 1-2 in three games with the Kings. Natt does not to seem to be on the start that would suggest the Kings made the right decision, but it is very early in the change. The NBA has just not faired well this season with coaching changes.

Theus was officially the 6^th coach to lose their job in the NBA this season which is twice as many ever fired before Christmas in NBA history. Despite the lack of success of coaching changes there is still a good possibility a few more coaches may be released in the upcoming weeks. Memphis Grizzlies Coach Marc Iavaroni has reportedly been on the hot seat for a few weeks and could be the next coach to be fired in the NBA. The Grizzlies are off to a 9-17 start and do not appear to be heading in the right direction. Another possibility is Mike Dunleavy of the L.A. Clippers. The Clippers are underachieving at an 8-18 record on the season and Dunleavy is taking much of the blame. The chances of some other teams losing coaches by the end of the year are certain. The real question is when these coaches will be let go. However, only one of the six teams that have fired coaches this season has seen a benefit from their change. Still the fact remains that in the NBA many times you can be one loss away from losing your job.