The Celtics are historically great on the road — and families like the Chavezes are the biggest winners 

Jayson Tatum and the Celtics have been dominant on the road this season, and the thousands of fans who travel miles to see them play are rewarded.

HOUSTON — Like most NBA arenas, Toyota Center was inundated with Celtics green hours before tip-off.

So, after warm-ups concluded, and the Rockets’ dance team took the floor for some pregame entertainment, I meandered around the arena to get the backstory of just a few of the hundreds (maybe thousands?) of Celtics fans in attendance.

What I learned won’t shock anyone: some of the fans are Texans, raised in a multi-generation family of Celtics diehards. Others were born and raised in New England, but relocated to Texas as adults and eagerly await their once-a-year opportunity when the Celtics come to town.

But, the majority of the people I spoke with pregame traveled hours to Houston in order to watch their favorite team play in a single regular season basketball game on the second night of a back-to-back.

I met a couple who took a flight from Colombia just for 24 hours, because the wife’s favorite athlete in the world is Jayson Tatum. I chatted with a woman in my hotel elevator who traveled from Oklahoma City to Houston because she’s pursuing a life-long goal of seeing the Celtics play in all 30 NBA arenas (Toyota Center was No. 8). I met two sisters who drove from New Mexico to catch the Celtics play for their first time, and a mother and son who made the trip from central Louisiana.

As the game clock winded down with the Celtics leading the Rockets by 23, “Let’s go, Celtics” chants reverberated through the stadium. The in-arena host typically attempts to shut those down, either by starting a chant for the home team or blaring music. This one ran a little bit longer than most.

The weight of performing on the road is a responsibility that the Celtics hold near and dear to their hearts.

“It’s lovely, it’s unbelievable,” Kristaps Porzingis said after the Celtics’ win over the Rockets. “To have this kind of support in Houston, it’s unbelievable. That’s why it’s our job to show up each and every game, even if it’s on the road.”

The Celtics are 13-3 on the road this season, tied with the Thunder and Cavaliers for best in the league. On the road, they’ve outscored opponents by an average margin of 10.9 points, the second-highest point differential in NBA history, per Dick Lipe of NBC Sports Boston. Under Joe Mazzulla, the Celtics have an astonishing 13-4 road playoff record, posting a 7-1 record last season. Over the last five seasons, no NBA team has had a better record away from home.

Being excellent away from TD Garden has become the standard as long as Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown have run the show, and it’s a consistency that traveling fans have come to rely on.

The story of one family who trekked from Mexico to Houston

Patrick Chavez appeared to be sitting alone when I approached him. He had a grin pasted across his face, as he watched the Celtics take the floor. There was a sense of child-like wonder on his face as he took in the sights and sounds of the arena. That look was enough to push me to stroll across the court and make conversation.

By the time I got to introduce myself as a Celtics reporter, I realized the man I had identified didn’t speak much English. After digging deep into my mediocre high school Spanish for a couple of back-and-forths in which I explained I was looking to chat with a few Celtics fans in attendance, his daughter, Denis, came over.

“He wants to do the interview,” she said resoundingly, explaining she could help translate. Chavez nodded eagerly.

Patrick explained he’d been a longtime Celtics fan, from the Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett years and through this current era. He rattled off the names of his favorite current players — Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown Kristaps Porzingis, Jrue Holiday — before trailing off, realizing he was naming everyone.

He struggled to find the words to describe his emotions when the Celtics won Banner 18 in June — even when I offered, he articulate his thoughts in Spanish.

“I cry,” Patrick said of his reaction to Banner 18.

Seven months later after the Larry O’Brien trophy was hoisted in Boston, Patrick and his family got into a car with his wife and daughter and drove 8 hours from their hometown in Mexico to Houston, Texas to watch the Celtics blow out the Rockets in person.

It was their second consecutive time making the trip to Houston to watch the Celtics play – and their second time relishing in a victory.

“We support him,” said Patrick’s daughter, Denis, who said that she isn’t personally a massive Celtics fan, but that she nonetheless enjoys making the trip out with her family. Patrick’s wife nodded in agreement.

The Chavezes are not particularly unique — they’re one family of many who embarked on a long journey just to watch their favorite team play in Houston. As the Celtics’ west coast road trip continues, so will the never-ending influx of traveling Celtics fans.

One father-son duo, Aaron and Mark Kazanoff, made the trip to Houston from Austin and New Orleans, respectively. Aaron, the father, said that he’s been a Celtics fan since his own dad took him to a game when he was a kid in the 1960s. When he was a self-described “brash” 11-year-old, Aaron walked right into the Celtics locker room after a game.

“I walked in there, and there were all my heroes, Jim Luscutoff, they were all in there in the dressing room, smoking cigarettes,” he said. “I walked in and got everybody’s autograph.”

Aaron raised his own son, Mark, to be a Celtics fan as well. The two now live more than 500 miles apart, but the annual Celtics-Rockets game serves as a sort of reunion.

For the players, the knowledge that fans are traveling a long way to watch them play places a greater responsibility to perform. It’s a duty that Jayson Tatum — who has been particularly dominant on the road this season — has spoken about on numerous occasions.

This season, Tatum has averaged 30.9 points on 47.2% shooting on the road. At home, he’s averaged 25.8 points on 45.5% shooting.

“Especially going to the west coast, I understand the following that we have as a team, I understand the following that I have individually, seeing all those people with Tatum ‘0’ jerseys and shirts, and people having my shoes,” Tatum said.

“Kids might’ve gotten these tickets for their birthdays or Christmas, knowing that’s the only time I get to come in town. That’s why I never want to miss road games, that’s why I understand the importance of playing in front of fans, especially on the road. I love going on the road. I love playing in front of different crowds and seeing all the support that we have around the country.”

It’s not only kids, and it’s not only fans from the U.S. But, Tatum is right — people travel a very long way for their once-in-a-blue-moon chance to watch him and the Celtics play.