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

Boston is gearing up to defend its title in this year's playoffs.

Feb 28, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA: Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown (7) high fives forward Jayson Tatum (0) after the Cleveland Cavaliers called a timeout during the first quarter at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-Imagn Images / Winslow Townson-Imagn Images

Boasting a 54-19 record on the year, the Boston Celtics are 4.5 games behind the 59-15 Cleveland Cavaliers for the rights to the Eastern Conference's No. 1 seed this spring.

The reigning champs have just nine games to catch up to Cleveland, and although the Cavaliers recently suffered a four-game losing skid, the team seems to have righted the ship. Thus, Boston is most likely destined to start the playoffs as the East's No. 2 seed.

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Boston is 8.5 games ahead of the 46-27 New York Knicks, while the 43-30 Indiana Pacers are too far away to catch up. With another Celtics win, the team will be uncatchable for New York.

So who will Boston see in the first round of its title defense this year?

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Per Bobby Manning of CLNS, the 35-38 Atlanta Hawks now have a 91 percent chance of finishing as the No. 7 or No. 8 seed in the East. The 35-39 Orlando Magic, currently the No. 8 seed, have a 64.1 percent chance to finish as a No. 7 or No. 8 seed.

#Hawks have a 91% chance to finish 7/8, per Bball Ref, and that's with a projected 5-6 finish. #Magic 64.1% as #Bulls surge into the mix. 10 games left for ORL/CHI.

— Bobby Manning (@RealBobManning) March 25, 2025

The 33-40 Chicago Bulls are the East's No. 9 seed, and the 32-41 Miami Heat round out the play-in tournament hopefuls as the conference's No. 10 seed. At 27-47, the No. 11-seeded Toronto Raptors are far back enough of the pack that it seems unlikely they'd overtake Chicago or Miami. They certainly don't want to.

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The Hawks haven't been in the playoffs for two years.

Atlanta's last appearance, in fact, was a six-game first-round series loss to the Celtics in 2023. Four-time All-Star Hawks point guard Trae Young averaged 29.2 points on .403/.333/.860 shooting splits, 10.2 assists (against 4.0 turnovers), 3.7 rebounds, 1.7 steals, and 0.7 blocks while playing zero defense against then-Boston point guard Marcus Smart.

Without their best player, forward Jalen Johnson, the Hawks' offense has gotten more predictable around Young, an exciting offensive player who can occasionally ice out teammates as he prioritizes keeping the ball in his hands late.

The Orlando Magic, meanwhile, are missing All-Defensive point guard Jalen Suggs. He's done for the year following a left knee scope earlier this month.

.@OrlandoMagic INJURY UPDATE pic.twitter.com/B3HmxoL3AB

— Orlando Magic PR (@Magic_PR) March 4, 2025

Chicago's top point-of-attack defender, Ayo Dosunmu, is out for the season following a left shoulder surgery a few weeks ago.

Medical Update: After experiencing left shoulder instability and further evaluation from training and medical professionals, Ayo Dosunmu will undergo surgery and be out for the remainder of the season.

Updates will be provided as appropriate. pic.twitter.com/73JgzApS9W

— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) March 2, 2025

The seventh and eighth seeds will play each other in the play-in tournament for the right to face off against the Celtics. The victor will notch the No. 7 seed and play Boston, while the loser will play the winner of a 9-10 play-in game for the right to the No. 8 seed and a game against Cleveland.

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