Since the start of 2026, the Celtics own the best offensive rating and net rating in the NBA.
Which team ranks second in both of those categories? It isn’t defending champion Oklahoma City. It isn’t Detroit or San Antonio, either.
It’s the longtime Eastern Conference cellar-dweller that visited TD Garden on Wednesday: the Charlotte Hornets.
Under the direction of former Boston assistant Charles Lee, who won a title with the Celtics in 2024 before landing his first head-coaching job, the Hornets are on pace for their best finish in a decade. Following a 19-63 campaign in Lee’s first year and a 4-14 start to this season, they’ve ranked among the top teams in the NBA, boasting the league’s seventh-best record since Thanksgiving.
Charlotte has been especially impressive of late, entering Wednesday with a 15-3 record over its last 18 games. Tuesday’s win over Dallas got the 31-31 Hornets back to .500 as they push toward their first playoff berth since 2016. The long-suffering franchise has not won a postseason series since 2002, before its mid-200s rebirth as the Charlotte Bobcats.
“The time that I got to spend with Charles, you knew he was going to be a great head coach,” Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla said pregame. “And I think they just continue to get better and better.”
Lee’s coaching staff also includes ex-Celtics assistants Blaine Muller and Jermaine Bucknor. On the court, they’re led by a young, explosive starting five of LaMelo Ball, Brandon Miller, Miles Bridges, Moussa Diabate and Rookie of the Year contender Kon Knueppel that leads all NBA lineups in net rating by a healthy margin (minimum 100 minutes played).
“Obviously, with the players that they have, they’re just continuing to get better,” Mazzulla said. “But when you watch them, one, you tell how competitive they are, especially in the margins. They’re second in 3-point attempt percentage. They get a ton of offensive rebounds, especially in late-game close-game situations. Physical on the point of attack defensively. That comes from the guys, and it obviously comes from the job that Charles and staff are doing.”
Sitting ninth in the East standings as of Wednesday, the Hornets loom a potential first-round playoff opponent for the second-place Celtics. They’ll play twice more before then — in Charlotte on March 29 and in Boston on April 7.
Tillman returns
Charlotte’s bench features Boston alums Grant Williams and the recently traded Xavier Tillman, as well as Arlington native Pat Connaughton.
Tillman, who was part of the Celtics’ 2024 championship team, has played sparingly since the C’s dealt him ahead of last month’s trade deadline, but Lee and Williams both said the popular 27-year-old has brought a valuable veteran presence to the Hornets’ locker room.
“My time here in Boston, being with X, he brought a joy to the building every day,” Lee said. “… I was looking forward to just getting a guy that I think can help be a good veteran in our locker room and help our young players as we continue on throughout this season.”
Asked what he’ll remember about his Celtics tenure, Tillman said he’ll cherish both the on-court success and the off-the-court connections.
“I really appreciate just the relationships I was able to build with them,” the veteran big man said.
Vucevic buying in
Nikola Vucevic believes the Celtics have the talent and mindset to stage what would be the first deep playoff run of the veteran center’s 15-year NBA career.
“I think all the organizations I’ve been on have tried to do things right,” Vucevic said at Wednesday’s morning shootaround. “Obviously, I think here the main thing is we have a team that gives you a chance to go all the way. So I think there’s just kind of that sense of urgency around everyone that we have a great chance to try to win, and so everybody’s kind of locked into that. I think that’s the biggest difference. I’ve never been on a team that’s as talented as this one, that’s had a chance to win, that’s had guys that have won big.”
Vucevic was a rookie on the 2011-12 Philadelphia 76ers team that lost to the Big Three-era Celtics in the East semifinals, but he has not advanced beyond the first round since. His teams in Orlando and Chicago won a total of three playoff games, with his last three full seasons with the Bulls all ending in the play-in tournament.
The Celtics were expected to be in that same class of mediocrity this season, but with how well they have performed to this point, an early playoff exit now would be considered a major disappointment.
Vucevic also has enjoyed teaming up with Jaylen Brown, who has urged his new teammate to be more aggressive on the offensive end. Brown recently said he wants Vucevic — who’s averaging 11.8 points and 8.2 rebounds since his trade to Boston last month — attempting at least 10 field goals per game.
“He doesn’t always say a lot, but when he says something, you know there’s a good intent behind it, and it helps the team,” Vucevic said. “I think just the way he approaches the game, the way he approaches when we work, when we do stuff, you can tell he’s very committed. The guys respond to him. You can just tell every game we’ve played, he’s played really well for us. … He’s a hell of a player, and he’s had a hell of a year.”
Tatum comeback looming?
One sign that Jayson Tatum’s return from Achilles surgery could be imminent: the condensed release schedule of his “The Quiet Work” docuseries.
The show, a collaboration between Tatum’s new production company and NBC Sports, was scheduled to drop its five “minisodes” over the course of five weeks, premiering one each Sunday during NBC’s NBA coverage. Each would provide a behind-the-scenes look at a different stage of the Celtics star’s recovery.
It stuck to that cadence for the first two weeks, delivering Episode 1 on Feb. 22 and Episode 2 this past Sunday — then proceeded to put out the third installment on Monday and the fourth on Tuesday.
Tatum was ruled out for Wednesday’s game, but file this under: “Hmm …” Will we see him back in uniform Friday, when the Celtics host the Dallas Mavericks on ESPN?
Off the rim
Tatum impressed Tillman with his commitment to rehab. “It was pretty constant,” Tillman said. “He was here, like, six days a week, getting it in and always doing something to better his body. It’s actually pretty impressive to see somebody so dedicated. And when I had those moments during the games to just chop it up with him, he just talked about how much he just misses playing — like, misses being able to get a rebound and push it, talk crap to the other team, and just everything that comes with playing.” … Williams, a Celtic from 2019-23, called Tatum during a recent Hornets off-day to catch up. “I’m just excited to have him back on the floor,” Williams said. “I said it the other night: Basketball misses him. I think this team misses him, as well, in Boston, and they’re going to roll with him when he gets back.”