Tuesday night's Game 5 between the Boston Celtics and the Orlando Magic will mark the first advancing situation for the defending NBA champions.
Leading the series 3-1 behind a 37-point performance from Jayson Tatum in Sunday's Game 4, the Celtics head back home for a potential close-out game in front of the raucous TD Garden crowd.
While Boston looks to advance to the second round for the fourth consecutive season, they already ruled out one starter on Monday and have listed another as questionable ahead of Tuesday's game.
Jrue Holiday Out, Jaylen Brown Questionable for Game 5
This will be the third straight game missed for Holiday with his lingering hamstring injury, and Brown has been dealing with a knee impingement for the latter part of this season.
Injury Report for tomorrow vs. Orlando:
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) April 28, 2025
Jaylen Brown (right knee posterior impingement) - QUESTIONABLE
Jrue Holiday (right hamstring strain) - OUT
It's safe to say the Magic aren't making this series easy for the Celtics from a health standpoint, as Jayson Tatum suffered a bone bruise in his wrist that forced him to miss Game 2. Tatum didn't seem to let the injury affect his play on the road in Orlando, putting up 36 and 37 point efforts.
Injuries can derail even the best of teams, and the Magic, although not trying to hurt anyone, have made some Celtics lives' tough in this first round series.
Without Holiday, Boston is still the heavy favorite in Game 5, with the spread (-11.5 on FanDuel Sportsbook) indicating that the Celtics should close the Magic out by double digits on Tuesday night.
While many may not think tonight is a "must-win" for the Celtics, leading 3-1, it would help to get more rest ahead of round two. Boston, assuming they can close out the Magic, will face the winner of the Knicks-Pistons series. Knowing the Knicks are leading 3-1 and have Game 5 at home on Tuesday, the Celtics should waste no time getting past the Magic, ensuring a few days off before the Knicks come to Boston.
A Celtics win paired with a Knicks loss in Game 5 would be the best-case scenario, and fans hope Boston won't be the ones having to travel back to enemy territory for a Game 6.
The Celtics-Knicks and Cavaliers-Pacers second-round series could be set as early as Tuesday, and Celtics fans will do some scoreboard watching before Game 5 tips off at 8:30 on NBA TV.
Going forward, Boston will need to be at full strength, as a semifinal matchup with the Knicks, followed by an Eastern Conference Finals matchup with the Cavaliers, may be looming. Holiday and Brown will be pivotal pieces in any series, but especially going forward, as the Knicks (or Pistons) are superior opponents to Orlando.
Could the Celtics still win Tuesday without Holiday and Brown? Yes, they could, but having Brown available will obviously make life easier for Boston.
Winning Game 5 would allow for Tatum's wrist, Brown's knee, and Holiday's hamstring to recover for a few extra days before a second-round series.
Even with the injury concerns, Boston is the favorite (-135) to win the Eastern Conference and reach their second straight Finals on FanDuel Sportsbook, but there will be less margin for error, and injuries will impact the team more going forward in the playoffs.