The NBA regular season officially wrapped up and the Boston Celtics secured the two-seed with a 61-19 record. However, they’ll have to wait for the Play-In Tournament to find out their first-round opponent. Boston will play the winner of the Orlando Magic and Atlanta Hawks game which takes place on Tuesday night. The Magic finished as the regular season seven-seed with a 41-41 record while the Hawks were just behind them with a 40-42 record. While the Celtics are poised to beat either possible opponent let’s explore who would be a more favorable matchup for Boston.
Do the Celtics Match Up Better With the Magic or Hawks?
How the Celtics Matchup With the Magic
At face value, the Magic’s star power led by forwards Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner makes them a tougher matchup for Boston. This dynamic forward duo could be challenging considering Jaylen Brown‘s injury. The Magic also have an elite defense which ranked second in the league. Orlando’s length and versatility is a notable strength. On the season, the Celtics were 1-2 against Orlando. However, one of these games came when the Celtics rested their entire top six.
The Magic’s talent, star power, and defense are impressive. Regardless, stylistically Boston has a massive advantage. Firstly the Celtics lead the league in three-pointers made while Orlando is dead last. The numbers game gives Boston a key advantage, which would be too difficult for Orlando to overcome. The Magic rank 27th in overall offense for the season. Furthermore, the Magic rank 30th in pace while the Celtics rank 29th. Boston thrives against fellow slow-paced teams but they struggle a bit more against fast-paced teams. Ultimately, the Magic’s combination of poor three-point shooting and slow pace bodes well for the Celtics.
How the Celtics Matchup With the Hawks
Similar to the Magic, Atlanta won the season series over Boston 2-1. However, they last played in January and the Hawks roster has changed a lot since then. The Hawks gave the Celtics trouble due to their elite wing defense, however, with Jalen Johnson out for the season and De’Andre Hunter now in Cleveland this strength isn’t as notable. While the Hawks still have Zaccharie Risacher and Dyson Daniels their wing depth isn’t the same. Elite wing defense is key to stopping the Celtics’ incredible offense led by Jayson Tatum and Brown. Additionally, with Brown, Derrick White, and Jrue Holiday the Celtics can make life difficult for Trae Young. The Hawks’ lack of scoring options outside of Young will be problematic especially compared to the Celtics’ plethora of offensive options.
One advantage the Hawks have is their fast-paced style, they ranked third in pace this season. Notably, the Celtics went just 9-6 against teams top five in pace this season. The Hawks always seem to give the Celtics a tough matchup; in the 2023 playoffs, the seven-seed Hawks gave Boston a hard-fought six-game series. While the Hawks’ style of play and experience against the Celtics will benefit them there are far too many issues to overcome.
The Last Word
Ultimately, the Celtics will beat either team with relative ease, however, the Hawks pose a somewhat easier matchup. Despite the Magic’s offensive limitations, their star power gives them a better chance at making this series competitive. If the Hawks had Jalen Johnson healthy it would be a different story, as their playstyle is more successful against the Celtics than Orlando.
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