Celtics Ideal First-Round Playoff Opponent Between Magic, Hawks

The Boston Celtics have long been clinched into the second seed in the Eastern Conference behind the Cleveland Cavaliers, but until now, it wasn’t clear who their potential first-round opponents would be.

The entire Eastern Conference is locked up, with the play-in tournament seeds established for next Tuesday’s games. There are two possible teams the Celtics can play in the first round, and they happen to play each other in their next two games.

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In the final game of their seasons, the Orlando Magic and Atlanta Hawks will face each other in what could be a game of two teams hiding their game plans. The outcome likely won’t mean much in the grand scheme of things.

However, the two teams will then face each other in the 7-8 matchup of the play-in tournament, with the winner facing the Celtics.

In terms of who the Celtics should want to face, there are pros and cons for both teams. The Magic have a clear identity of defense. They rank second in the NBA in defensive rating, only behind the Oklahoma City Thunder, and rank fourth worst in offensive rating.

The Magic also share an interesting stat with the Celtics that could make them the more interesting opponent to face. Looking at pace of play, the Celtics are the second-slowest team in the NBA. The only team they are behind in that category is the Magic.

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The Magic for sure have a chance to cause some problems for the Celtics on the defensive end, but without a healthy Paolo Banchero, they don’t have a lot going for them on offense besides Franz Wagner, who is averaging 24.2 points per game.

The Hawks are scary in the sense they have Trae Young, who has killed the Celtics in the playoffs in the past. They are less well-rounded as a team and look statistically worse overall on paper, but they have some individual players who can scare the Celtics.

Back in 2023, the Hawks pushed the Celtics to a six-game series, ironically in the 2-7 matchup. Young is really the only scary player on offense though, as other potential threats are currently injured.

The other player that can be threatening to the Celtics but on the defensive end is Dyson Daniels. He led the NBA in steals per game by a wide margin with three per game, which could spell problems for the at times turnover prone Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.

However, as long as they are careful and cognizant of where Daniels is on the court, they should be fine.

While on paper the Magic seem like the scarier team, the Hawks have more individuals who can significantly impact a playoff series, which is sometimes all it takes to make noise in the playoffs. That means that despite their great defense, the Magic are the ideal opponent for the Celtics in the first round of the NBA playoffs.

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For more news and notes on the Boston Celtics, visit Boston Celtics on SI.