When Boston Celtics’ 127 million dollar man, Gordon Hayward, went down with a broken leg in the opening quarter of the season, the city of Boston was in shambles. The excitement for the new season was turned into a deep sadness. No matter who you talked to, they would say that the Celtics season was over, and it really did seem to be. The team had been forced to give up players like Avery Bradley and Jae Crowder in order to sign Hayward therefore would have to start a rookie.

After a loss to the Milwaukee Bucks just a day after the injury, the team seemed defeated and reality became to creep in. This was supposed to be the year, after four years of rebuilding by GM Danny Ainge, the team was ready to overcome LeBron James and the Cavs and contend for a title. However, after Hayward went down, the fans of Boston would have to wait another year for a chance at a title, there was no belief that newly acquired point guard Kyrie Irving could lead the team single handedly.

This is exactly what Irving wanted, his own team to lead to a championship, and what better place to do it then Boston, where legends are made and titles are won. When he requested a trade out of Cleveland over the summer, it was known that he was tired of being the sidekick to LeBron, and that he wanted to be the guy and lead a team on his own.

With the city of Boston’s weight on Irving’s shoulders, he brought hope back to the city and led the team on a 16 game win streak, with wins against the defending champion Golden State Warriors and the star studded Oklahoma City Thunder. In both of those games the Celtics were down 17 and 18 in the second half. Throughout the win streak, the team overcame five double digit deficits and made history as they became the first Celtics team to start a season 16-2.

Irving wasn’t the only reason for the win streak, he even missed a game with a fracture in his face. Players like Al Horford, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Terry Rozier, Marcus Smart,  Aron Baynes, and so many more contributed during the win streak. Tatum, a rookie at only age 19, has been forced into the starting lineup and has looked like an experienced veteran with his contributions on both sides of the ball. Currently, Tatum leads the NBA in three-point field goal percentage. Brown and Horford have been unbelievable on both sides, with Brown averaging over a steal per game and Horford averaging over a block per game. Also, they each are averaging over 15 points a game.

While the Celtics have been average on offense, the defense has been off the charts. They currently lead the NBA in defensive rating at 99.1, and are fourth in overall net rating.

After a loss to the Miami Heat that ended the streak, the Celtics continued to win, despite a loss to the Detroit Pistons, the team has gone 4-2 since the streak has been snapped. They continue to have the best record in the league at 21-4. They look good on defense and are starting to really click on offense, as young players are beginning to adapt to the NBA. he question is if they can keep it up and compete with Lebron and the Cavs. With Kyrie on a mission of his own and role players out playing their roles, it is looking like the Celtics will have a chance in May to finally dethrone “The King” and go after Banner 18.