Strange Joe Mazzulla History Could Favor Magic Over Celtics

The Boston Celtics are opening their title repeat journey against the Orlando Magic in the 2025 NBA playoffs. After another successful regular season, the Celtics are being viewed as one of the favorites to win the title again.

More Celtics news: Dwight Howard Reveals Why Celtics Will Lose to Magic

Barring any major injury to the core, the Celtics should be one of the favorite to come out of the East again.

Entering this first game with the Magic, the Celtics are being seen as a double-digit favorite. After all, they will be opening the series up at home, and they are a better team than the Magic.

But a weird history from head coach Joe Mazzulla could spell some trouble for Boston in this game. Mazzulla has the most playoff losses being a double-digit favorite over the past 35 years.

Joe Mazzulla’s five playoff losses as a double-digit favorite are the most of any coach in the last 35 seasons 😳 pic.twitter.com/vP44YnIJxM
— ESPN BET (@ESPNBET) April 20, 2025

This is a wild stat from Mazzulla, but it shows how in the postseason, anything can happen. As Boston gets ready for the game against the Magic, they will be looking to avoid letting Mazzulla add another loss to this record.

Boston should be able to handle the Magic, but Orlando is a very tough defensive team. They like to hound opponents on the defensive end, making life very tough.

However, the downfall of the Magic tends to come from their offensive output. The Magic tend to struggle with scoring the ball at times, especially shooting from beyond the arc.

In contrast, the Celtics are one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the NBA, which could cause some major issues for Orlando. All in all, fans should be ready for a tough series against the Magic, even if the Celtics win.

Orlando isn't going to back down from the Celtics, and Boston is going to need to be on their A-game in this matchup. Every team is tough come playoff time, so the Celtics can't afford to overlook Orlando as this series gets started.

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'Now We're Competing,' Paolo Banchero Throws Friendship With Celtics' Jayson Tatum Aside

For more news and notes on the Boston Celtics, head on over to Boston Celtics on SI.