The Celtics have been battling injuries all year long, but their latest absence (Avery Bradley) may have helped them discover an answer to their season-long defensive woes.

Without Bradley, Brad Stevens has elected to insert Jaylen Brown into the starting lineup at the shooting guard spot and the Celtics have responded with seven straight wins, quietly developing into one of the hottest teams in the NBA in the past two weeks.

While Boston’s offense remains among the NBA’s elite, largely thanks to Isaiah Thomas, their defense has been just as impressive over that stretch. During the last seven games, the Celtics have had the league’s fifth-best defense by allowing just 102.2 points per 100 possessions, several points better than their season average.


A tough four-game road trip against some elite offenses out west will test Boston’s defensive progress this week, but for now the Celtics are looking like a two-way team for the first team all season.

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Avery Bradley: The shooting guard has missed 13 of Boston’s last 14 games with an Achilles injury, including nine straight. He remains day-to-day.

14. Demetrius Jackson: A steady all-around skillset is being shown by the second-round pick in Maine (4.7 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game), but Jackson can’t seem to shake his shooting woes from the field. He’s hit a mere 33 percent of his attempts in February.

13. Jordan Mickey: The 6-foot-8 forward may just be in his second season but his performance on Saturday night for the Red Claws showed he’s probably a bit overqualified for the D-League at this point. The 22-year-old went for 27 points on 11-of-12 shooting and 10 rebounds.

12. James Young: The next two weeks may also serve as Young’s final days in a Celtics uniform. The 21-year-old has fallen out of the rotation yet again and is a top candidate to be traded or cut as the Celtics attempt to address other holes on the roster.

11. Gerald Green: The swingman’s playing time continues to decline even with Avery Bradley sidelined (14 minutes in his last three games). However, Green’s still managed to get up three shots in each of those contests.


10. Tyler Zeller: Small ball continues to be an obstacle for Zeller to gain minutes (two straight DNP-CDs), but his defensive presence has outweighed his offensive limitations during the C’s latest winning streak. The Celtics have an incredible 84.3 defensive rating when he’s on the floor since last Monday, the best mark of any player on the roster.

9. Jonas Jerebko: The Swede has experienced a couple bad breaks during the past week. Not only is he struggling with his shot (30 percent) during the streak, but teammate Jaylen Brown broke his nose during the win over the Clippers on Sunday. It’s the second time in the last two weeks that his face has taken a beating after James Harden caught him with an elbow back in January.

8. Terry Rozier: The hottest 3-point shooter on the roster during the C’s winning streak? Look no further than Rozier, who is hitting an impressive 60 percent of his attempts from downtown since last Monday. That’s an encouraging stretch for the 30.8 percent career 3-point shooter.

7. Jaylen Brown: The Celtics are 7-0 since inserting the rookie into the starting lineup. How is the No. 3 overall pick giving them a boost? Look no further than his ability to finish through contact as seen against Blake Griffin on Sunday afternoon.

Brown’s four free throws per game over the last week are second-highest total on the team behind Isaiah.

6. Kelly Olynyk: Rebounding has never been known as the seven-footer’s strong suit, but he’s made some notable strides on the glass, grabbing four or more boards during six straight games. His 6.3 defensive rebounds average per 36 minutes is also the highest mark of his career.


5. Amir Johnson: Johnson doesn’t get many chances to shoot the ball (4.6 attempts per game), but he’s making the most of those limited opportunities during the past two weeks. The 30-year-old veteran is hitting 72 percent of his field goal attempts since Jan. 25, including half of his shots from beyond the arc.

4. Marcus Smart: The feisty 6-foot-4 guard has been a defensive menace since his rookie year but the Celtics’ offense has also been rolling with him serving as sixth man during Boston’s latest surge as well. The Celtics have an offensive rating of 117 points/100 possessions with Smart on the floor during their seven-game winning streak, a mark that’s higher than Isaiah Thomas and Al Horford.

3. Al Horford: Defensive rebounding has been a weakness for the Celtics all year, but Horford has stepped up his work on the glass with the team’s top rebounder (Avery Bradley) sidelined. The three-time All-Star grabbed a season-high 15 rebounds against an imposing Clippers frontline Sunday, including 13 on the defensive end.

2. Jae Crowder: Isaiah Thomas may be garnering MVP votes across the league, but Crowder isn’t far behind him when considering who is the most valuable player on the Celtics’ roster. His +8.6 net rating is far and away the best number on the roster, and he’s been improving on that lately with his rebounding (six or more boards in 10 straight games) and scoring (double-digit points in 13 straight games).

1. Isaiah Thomas: The All-Star was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week for the second time in the past three months on Monday. He’s been nominated for the award seven straight weeks overall, while making a run at the highest scoring season (29.9 points per game) in Celtics history.