NBA Power Rankings, Week 5: Boston Celtics top 5 after embarrassment

The Boston Celtics come in at No. 4 this week in the Week 5 NBA Power Rankings despite a 30-point loss to the New York Knicks on Sunday.

Dropping three spots, the team is now looking up at the Los Angeles Clippers (No. 3), the Milwaukee Bucks (No. 2) and the defending NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers (No. 1).

Following a long layoff due to Covid-19 outbreak, the Celtics came out firing against the Orlando Magic on Friday without the services of Jayson Tatum, Kemba Walker and Robert Williams.

In that game, Jaylen Brown continued to shine as did rookie sensation Payton Pritchard who continues to have Payton Prichard mania running wild.

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But, as much as things went right in that game, everything went wrong for the team in the blowout loss against the New York Knicks with Walker back on the court for the first time this season.

Boston Celtics fans should be excited about the return of Kemba Walker

As disappointing as that performance was, the team still sits on top of the Eastern Conference with an 8-4 record.  Most importantly, they got Kemba back which makes the team a stronger team in the long run.

NBA.com’s John Schuhmann notes how Kemba’s return will eventually be good for the Celtics:

"“Kemba Walker was not great (3-for-13, five turnovers in less than 20 minutes) in his season debut on Sunday, he took a hard elbow to the ribs right before he hit his minutes limit, and the Celtics got trounced by a team that had lost five straight. But that Walker is healthy far outweighs any of the details from Sunday, like the fact that it was the least efficient game for any team this season. We don’t know when Jayson Tatum will be back, but the Celtics are still in second place in the East after three postponements and an easy win over the Magic on Friday.”"

Schuhmann goes on to mention how Brad Stevens may have found something by separating Tristan Thompson and Daniel Theis by having Theis come off the bench.  This is something to watch moving forward as the Celtics have shown to be more sufficient with one of the centers on the floor than having them both out there together.

Jaylen Brown the top Boston Celtics performer of the week

Brown really stepped up in the absence of Jayson Tatum in the team’s 124-97 blowout victory over the Orlando Magic last Friday night.

While the team got some great contribution off the bench from players like Pritchard and Semi Ojeleye, Brown really took the team on his back with his playmaking skills.

Along with this team-high 21 points, Brown dissed out a career-high 8 assists showing that he is ascending into a superstar in the league in more ways than just his scoring and defense.

Brown also led the team with 25 points in that forgettable 30-point loss to the New York Knicks.  With Kemba back and finding his way, Brown should’ve been more aggressive early in the game when it was apparent he was the only player knocking down shots.

If there is any knock on the week Jaylen Brown had, it is his reluctance to take over that game on Sunday.

What’s next for the Boston Celtics

The Celtics are scheduled for a pair of games in Philadelphia against Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and the 76ers this week before hosting the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Sitting on top of the Atlantic division, this would be a good challenge for the Celtics who may still be without Tatum for the game.  Both games in Philadelphia are at risk of being postponed due to health and safety surrounding a Covid-19 outbreak.

On a side note, it would be the first time the Celtics face off against the 76ers with their former coach Doc Rivers running the show.  That should certainly vamp up the rivalry.