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Celtics officially eliminated from NBA Cup after improbable scenario nearly plays out
The Celtics almost had a path to the knockout round after the Knicks briefly attained a 37-point lead against the Magic on Tuesday.
The Boston Celtics are going to be on the outside looking in at the NBA Cup for the second year in a row.
After getting bounced in the knockout rounds last winter, the Celtics did not advance out of group play in 2024 — with Boston’s hopes of earning a wild-card spot dashed after several scenarios didn’t go their way.
Even though the Celtics finished group play with a 3-1 record, so did the Atlanta Hawks — who defeated Boston, 117-116, on Nov. 12 to earn the tie-breaker over the reigning champions.
With Atlanta winning Group C, the Celtics needed several breaks on Tuesday to sneak in as the wild-card club:
- The Orlando Magic needed to beat the New York Knicks OR the Knicks needed to win by 37+ points.
- The Milwaukee Bucks had to beat the Detroit Pistons by 6+ OR the Pistons had win by 7+.
The Bucks did their part to put the Celtics on the path to the next round after Milwaukee blew out the Pistons, 128-107.
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The Magic jumped out to an early 8-0 lead against the Knicks, sparking hope that Orlando could beat the Knicks and clinch the Celtics’ wild-card spot.
But the Knicks responded with a 11-0 run of their own and did not look back.
But as improbable as a 37-plus-point win for the Knicks might have been on Tuesday, New York came pretty close to posting such a lopsided win – allowing the Celtics to sneak in against all odds.
After Mikal Bridges sank a 3-pointer with 2:54 left in the third, New York held a 103-66 lead — the 37-point advantage that Boston needed.
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But the Knicks could not keep it going, with the Magic fighting back enough en route to an eventual 121-106 Knicks victory.
The Bucks, Knicks, and Hawks all advanced to the knockout round as winners of their respective groups, while the Magic earned the final spot as the wild-card team.
The NBA Cup will move forward without the Celtics once the knockout round begins on Dec. 10.
As for the Celtics? Boston will now have two regular-season games added to their schedule: one on Dec. 12 or Dec. 13, and another on Dec. 15 or Dec. 16. Locations and opponents have yet to be determined.
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