Celtics' Jayson Tatum Jokes About Easy Schedule: 'Don't Know When That S--t' Starts

By the numbers, the Boston Celtics have one of the easiest paths for the rest of the regular season, but Jayson Tatum isn't so sure whether that's true in reality.

"I read somewhere that we've got the easiest schedule remaining," he told reporters after Wednesday's 127-120 overtime victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves. " I don't know when that s--t's gonna start."

Per Tankathon, Boston's remaining opponents have a combined winning percentage of .466, which is the third-lowest in the league.

To Tatum's point, it's not as though the Celtics having one of the "easiest" schedules means they're getting a cakewalk between now and mid-April. A .466 winning percentage basically equals out to the ninth-place Chicago Bulls in the Eastern Conference or the 12th-place Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference.

Boston's remaining strength of schedule is also skewed somewhat by the fact it has five games split between the Detroit Pistons and Washington Wizards still to play.

Tatum's comment underscores the general grind of the NBA regular season. Wednesday's game was the first half of a back-to-back, with the Celtics hitting the road to play the 25-12 Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday night.

Looking ahead, playing the Toronto Raptors on Jan. 15 and the San Antonio Spurs on Jan. 17 should constitute a bit of respite for Boston. But then a home date with the reigning champion Denver Nuggets looms before the Celtics embark on a three-game road trip that features matchups with the Houston Rockets, Dallas Mavericks and Miami Heat.

That stretch doesn't exactly qualify as "easy."