The 2011–12 Boston Celtics season was the 66th season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Boston Celtics finished the regular season with a 39-27 won-loss record, which was the 4th best in the East, winning their 21st Atlantic Division title. Their longest winning and losing streaks were 5 games. The leading scorer was Paul Pierce, averaging 19.4 PPG. The leading rebounder was Kevin Garnett (8.2 RPG). Rajon Rondo led the team and the league in assists per-game with 11.7. The regular season was reduced from its usual 82 games to 66 due to the lockout. The Celtics made a relatively deep playoff run, challenging the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals. They ultimately lost in seven games. Following the season, Ray Allen left for the Heat, effectively ending the Big 3 era in Boston.
June 23: The 2011 NBA draft took place at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.December 25: The regular season begins with a matchup against the New York Knicks in a rematch from the previous season's playoffs.April 18: The Celtics secure the Atlantic Division title in a 102–98 win against the Orlando Magic.April 29: The 2012 NBA Playoffs started.May 10: The Celtics advanced to the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals, defeating the Atlanta Hawks.May 25: The Celtics advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals, defeating the Philadelphia 76ersJune 9: The Celtics were defeated by the Miami Heat and were eliminated from the NBA Playoffs.1 Statistics with the Boston Celtics.Awards, records and milestones
Paul Pierce was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week twice (January 30 – February 5 and March 26 – April 1).Kevin Garnett was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week (April 9 – 15).Paul Pierce and Rajon Rondo participated in the 2012 NBA All-Star Game. It was their 10th and 3rd appearance respectively.On March 22 Paul Pierce surpassed Clyde Drexler on the All-time scoring leaders table in a 100–91 win against the Milwaukee Bucks.Injuries and suspensions
Jeff Green will not be available for the 2011–12 season to recover from a heart surgery.Chris Wilcox was out for the season in March with a cardiac irregularity.Jermaine O'Neal was out for the season on March to have surgery on his left wrist.Rajon Rondo earned a two-game suspension for throwing the ball to a referee during a game against the Detroit Pistons on February 19 and was suspended for one game during the playoffs for bumping a referee on game 1 of the first round against the Atlanta Hawks.Many players signed with teams from other leagues due to the 2011 NBA lockout. FIBA allows players under NBA contracts to sign and play for teams from other leagues if the contracts have opt-out clauses that allow the players to return to the NBA if the lockout ends. The Chinese Basketball Association, however, only allows its clubs to sign foreign free agents who could play for at least the entire season.
