Brad Stevens: Celtics 'Gotta Play a Lot Better' Despite 14-Game Win Streak

Boston Celtics head coach Brad Stevens said Saturday there's still room for improvement despite the team's current 14-game winning streak.

The Celtics opened the regular season 0-2 and haven't lost since with a remarkable run that's featured victories over the Golden State Warriors, San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder. The 41-year-old coach isn't buying into his own squad's hype, though. 

"We haven't played well enough to consider this win streak to be valid in my opinion," the fifth-year coach told reporters. "We've figured out ways to win games. We gotta play a lot better."

Although Boston's 14-2 record is two games clear of the Houston Rockets (12-4) as the best mark in the NBA, it's not a team without flaws.

The Celtics rank 23rd in the league in offensive efficiency, per ESPN.com. The issues at that end of the floor have been overcome by their dominance at the defensive end, where they rank first in efficiency.

"We've got to be better, and we know that," Stevens said. "We can't get so caught up in the results of all these games and ride that emotion. We've been fortunate to win a lot of the games in this streak, including Thursday night. If we dig ourselves a 17-point hole every other game, it's not going to be as much fun as we've had recently."

Losing Gordon Hayward to a gruesome leg injury in his Celtics debut is a major reason for the lack of consistency on offense. That said, the team must find a way to become more effective without him since he's expected to miss the entire season to recover.

Boston will look to stretch its streak to 15 straight victories Saturday night when they battle the Atlanta Hawks at Philips Arena to kick off a three-game road trip.