Nobody expected the Boston Celtics to be this good. In fact, coming into the season, more people thought the Boston would be a play-in team than a contending team. In truth, those expectations were fair. Jayson Tatum had just gone down with an Achilles injury, and Brad Stevens had ushered in a retooling phase for the franchise.

Boston Celtics fans are enjoying an unexpectedly competitive season. Things weren't supposed to be going so well for Joe Mazzulla's roster this year, not after trading away Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday,

On one side, there’s the Boston Celtics. One of the hottest teams in the NBA looking to escape their West Coast swing with a 4-0 record. On the other, the Denver Nuggets. A top-three seed in the Western Conference looking to regain their rhythm amidst a rough patch.

Philadelphia is looking to keep its three-game win streak alive when the 76ers take on Boston. Sunday's meeting will be the fourth of the season between the two teams.

Jaylen Brown returned to Boston's lineup after sitting out Tuesday night at Phoenix with a right knee contusion. Brown had 23 points for the Celtics, who finished 3-1 on a Western Conference trip. They had won five straight and nine of 10 before running out of steam in the thin air.

It was the most points the Nets had allowed all season. So was the 66.7 percent shooting they conceded. And the misprint-like 64.7 percent from 3-point range. Not since 2022 had B

Joe Mazzulla and Jaylen Brown comment on Nikola Vucevic's on-court improvement for the Celtics, especially on offense.