The Celtics won’t be adding an NBA Cup to their trophy case this season.
Boston officially was eliminated from the in-season tournament Tuesday night by losing a point-differential tiebreaker to the Orlando Magic.
After finishing second in Eastern Conference Group C with a 3-1 record, the Celtics needed to have the highest margin of victory of the East group runner-ups to earn a wild-card berth to the quarterfinals. They got the blowout they wanted in Milwaukee-Detroit, with the Bucks beating the Pistons 128-107. But the New York Knicks’ ensuing victory over the Magic fell several points short of what Boston required.
The Celtics needed the Knicks to either lose or win by 37 points or more. New York led by as many as 37 on its orange court at Madison Square Garden but won by just 15, 121-106, to clinch Group A and send the Magic through as the wild card.
The two East quarterfinals will pit the Magic against the Bucks in Detroit and the Atlanta Hawks against the Knicks at MSG. The semifinals and finals will be held at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
To fill the gap in their schedule during the NBA Cup knockout rounds, the Celtics will play one home game and one road game next week against other eliminated Eastern Conference teams (Cleveland, Miami, Charlotte, Brooklyn, Philadelphia, Toronto, Washington, Detroit, Indiana and Chicago). The first of those games will be on Dec. 12 or 13; the second on Dec. 15 or 16.
Those matchups have yet to be announced.
Originally Published: December 3, 2024 at 10:05 PM EST
