Celtics' Biggest Challenge Isn't First-Round Opponent

The 61-21 Boston Celtics' attempt to nab their record-extending 19th championship will tip off on Sunday at 3:30 p.m. ET, when they'll host the 41-41 Orlando Magic.

Boston is looking to become the first club since the 2017-18 Golden State Warriors to win consecutive championships.

But before the Celtics can do that, they'll have to get through a tougher Eastern Conference gauntlet than the one they faced last year.

Boston was the top seed in the East, by a 14-win margin, over the 50-win New York Knicks, who were so banged up by the end of the Eastern Conference Semifinals that they fell to an inferior Indiana Pacers team.

This year, the Celtics aren't even the top seed in the conference. That'd be the 64-18 Cleveland Cavaliers, who, along with New York, Indiana, and the Detroit Pistons, are much improved from their 2023-24 iterations. The Milwaukee Bucks added some youth in Kyle Kuzma, Kevin Porter Jr., and Jericho Sims, but have a major health question mark of their own.

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Orlando, funnily enough, hasn't made much year-over-year headway. The Magic's growth has been stunted by a season-ending knee surgery to All-Defensive guard Jalen Suggs.

Still, Lorenzo Reyes and Jeff Zillgitt USA Today posit that only one East team really represents a major impediment to Boston at least advancing back to the NBA Finals.

"This one feels like it’s up to the Cavs," Reyes and Zillgitt write. "The Celtics swept the Knicks in the four games they played this season, by an average margin of 16.3 points. The Pacers were hot down the stretch, but Indiana struggles on the glass. The Bucks, who closed the season on an eight-game winning streak, may get Damian Lillard (deep vein thrombosis) back during the postseason, so they’d be a team to watch."

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Despite boasting a stellar top five (and not much proven depth beyond that), the Knicks, meanwhile, have been unable to take down the NBA's top teams this season.

The Knicks finish the season 0-10 against the Top 3 teams in the NBA:

vs. Celtics (0-4)
vs. Cavaliers (0-4)
vs. Thunder (0-2) pic.twitter.com/wUXTfbDWQX
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) April 12, 2025

"Cleveland, meanwhile, split its four games with Boston, and all were close. The Cavs (first in the NBA in offensive rating; 121.0) have the spacing and offensive firepower to match Boston’s (second; 119.5)."

The Cavaliers are absolutely elite on offense, as Reyes and Zillgitt can attest. When they get cooking, even against the mighy Celtics, they're tough to stop.

The Cavaliers' pick and roll offense has been dominant recently. A concept I love is starting in spread ball screen alignments but immediately cutting the corner into dunker spacing. Feels like they are able to get the results of both spread and dunker spacing all at once. pic.twitter.com/hJBVOh3lPU
— Eric Fawcett (@EricFawcett_) April 11, 2025

New Cleveland head coach Kenny Atkinson has helped create a more movement-heavy offense, with less of a focus on All-NBA star guard Donovan Mitchell, and more touches for his fellow All-Stars Darius Garland and Evan Mobley.

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Celtics’ First-Round Opponent Becoming Clearer as Regular Season Nears End

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Brian Windhorst Reveals Biggest X-Factor For Celtics to Repeat

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