• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Rondo leading Celtics stellar start

Dec 17, 2008 - 11:20 AM Boston (23-2) at Atlanta (15-9) 7:00 p.m. EST

ATLANTA (Ticker) -- The Boston Celtics are off to one of the best starts in NBA history, but "the Big Three" is not leading the way.

Rajon Rondo and the Celtics go for their 16th straight victory when they visit the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday.

Rondo collected 25 points, nine rebounds and eight assists, pacing Boston to a 100-91 victory against the Utah Jazz on Monday.

The win pushed the Celtics to within three victories of the best start in NBA history with two losses, shared by the 1966-67 Philadelphia 76ers and 1969-70 New York Knicks, which both opened those campaigns with 26-2 records.

Rondo, who is averaging 13.1 points, 7.8 assists and 5.4 rebounds during the surge, has helped the Celtics post the longest winning streak by a defending champion since 1991-92 when the Chicago Bulls won 14 straight games.

Boston may have a tough time continuing their win streak against the Hawks, who have won three straight and pushed the Celtics to seven games during the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs last season.

Joe Johnson poured in 28 points and Josh Smith added 15 and five blocks to lead Atlanta to an 83-79 victory over the lowly Charlotte Bobcats on Monday.

Johnson and Smith need another strong performance against the Celtics, who escaped with a 103--102 victory during the teams' first meeting on November 12.