Orlando Magic vs. Boston Celtics (April 9, 2025): 3 Things to Watch, Odds, and Prediction

• How To Watch: FanDuel Sports Network Florida (Orlando); NBC Sports Boston (Boston); NBA League Pass
• STREAM MAGIC-CELTICS ON FUBO TV
• How to Listen: WYGM 96.9 FM/740AM (Orlando); 98.5 The Sports Hub (Boston); NBA Audio League Pass; SiriusXM Channel 212 (Magic)
• FOLLOW LIVE: @OMAGICDAILY
• Tickets: $51-$679+ on StubHub
• Season Series: Magic 108, Celtics 104 in Orlando on Dec. 23; Celtics 121, Magic 94 in Boston on Jan. 17; Tonight in Orlando

Boston Celtics vs. Orlando Magic: Stats and 3 Keys to Watch

3. 3-Point Math

All season long, the Boston Celtics have been stretching what anybody thought was possible with 3-point shooting. They have been firing seemingly indiscriminately and hunting 3-pointers. When everyone complains about the shooting volume in the NBA, the Celtics are Exhibit One.

What is worse is that it has been wildly effective. The Celtics are in line to defend their NBA title and have won 27 of their last 32 games, firing from three so frequently.

Boston leads the league with 48.3 3-point attempts per game. The Celtics make 37.0 percent of those shots and lead the league with 17.9 3-point makes per game.

For an Orlando Magic team that struggles to make threes, this is a math problem. In a potential series against the Celtics, the 2-seed in the Eastern Conference, every game will come down to three-point shooting.

The Magic, as a team, are still last in the league, shooting 31.5 percent from three, and last in the league with 11.1 3-point makes. The good news is Orlando is shooting 35.5 percent from three and making 12.3 3-pointers per game in the last 15 games. That should help the Magic be competitive.

The other side of that coin is Orlando is still first in the league giving up only 31.2 3-point attempts per game. That is the key to the Magic in a potential series. They must work hard to limit 3-point attempts to give their offense a chance.

2. Who is playing?

This is the next part of the equation. The Boston Celtics played an overtime game against the New York Knicks on Tuesday before shuttling to Orlando. According to a post on X from Celtics play-by-play broadcaster Sean Grande, the team did not get to their hotel in Orlando until 3:39 a.m. Wednesday morning.

On top of all this, with the Cleveland Cavaliers defeating the Chicago Bulls on Tuesday, the Boston Celtics are officially locked into the 2-seed. They cannot move up or down in the standings.

Boston's injury report was lengthy as it was ahead of Tuesday's game. There are a lot of Celtics players nursing at least minor injuries. It seems likely many of those players will sit the second night of a back-to-back. Or at the very least they will play reduced minutes with nothing on the line.

The Magic must prepare as if everyone is playing, of course. But there is a good chance the Celtics ease off the throttle heading into this one.

1. One win away

The Orlando Magic have very little space to ease off the throttle. Their win over the Atlanta Hawks was a big one. It gave them a two-game lead over the Hawks with three games to play and clinched the division record tiebreaker. It brought the Magic to the doorstep of winning the Southeast Division.

The Chicago Bulls' loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers also put the Orlando Magic just one win away from clearing the Bulls and their season-series tiebreaker advantage.

Quite simply, Orlando can clinch the Southeast Division and the 7-seed with a win Wednesday. They can make the season's last two games irrelevant to their standing in the conference with one more win.

Orlando would certainly love to put that all to rest. As they learned last year, the pressure only increases the longer you wait to clinch that postseason spot. The Magic had four cracks to clinch a playoff spot in the last week of last season. They needed all four games to get the job done.

The Magic could get help from losses for the Bulls or Hawks, but they cannot count on it. The Magic can take care of their business tonight.

Boston Celtics vs. Orlando Magic: Injury Report & Projected Lineups

Boston Celtics Injury Report (From Tuesday)

• Jayson Tatum - QUESTIONABLE (Left Ankle Sprain)
• Jaylen Brown - QUESTIONABLE (Right Knee Posterior Impingement)
• Derrick White - PROBABLE (Right Big Toe Sprain)
• Jrue Holiday - PROBABLE (Right Shoulder Impingement)
• Kristaps Porzingis - QUESTIONABLE (Illness Non-COVID)
• Al Horford - OUT (Right Knee Sprain)

Orlando Magic Injury Report (From Tuesday)

• Jalen Suggs - OUT (Left Knee Trochlea Cartilage Tear)
• Moe Wagner - OUT (Left Knee Torn ACL)
• Mac McClung - OUT (G-League Two-Way)
• Ethan Thompson - OUT (G-League Two-Way)

Projected Lineups

Boston Celtics vs. Orlando Magic: Prediction

Our Record: 44-35/41-38 ATS

The Orlando Magic have the rest and travel advantage in this game. This smells like a schedule loss even before you get to anything else and no matter who plays. Traveling from New York to Orlando is just a late night. The Magic are not a team anybody wants to face without some advantages, even with their offensive struggles.

The Celtics potentially sitting some players (nothing is confirmed as of writing, and the Celtics likely will not reveal who is sitting until pregame media availability) only adds to the potential for the Magic to take advantage and get a win.

The Magic are the ones with motivation in this game. As intense as Celtics coach Joe Mazulla might be, it is human nature to ease off the throttle when there is nothing tangible to play for. Boston has nothing to play for other than getting itself right for the postseason or making a statement to a potential playoff opponent.

Orlando can clinch the 7-seed with a win and make the final two games more relaxing for the team. To do that in the final regular-season home game and avoid that pressure on the road would be vital. The Magic should be all-out to win this game.

No mater who the Celtics play, a motivated Magic team should get a good chance to accomplish that goal at home.