Toughest First-Round Opponent: Orlando Magic (29-34)
The Orlando Magic snapped their four-year playoff drought last season, going 47-35 and securing the East's fifth seed. They would end up falling short in the first round, losing to the Cavaliers in a hard-fought seven-game series.
Led by young stars Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner, this Magic team would provide the most fits for the Boston Celtics in the first round due to their defensive prowess.
Sitting in the eighth seed with a 29-34 record, things haven't gone to plan this season for the Magic, much due to the fact that Banchero was sidelined with an oblique injury from late October to early January. The young star has only played in 29 games this season.
To make matters worse, Franz Wagner missed a month and a half of play with an oblique injury as well. In an injury-plagued first half of the season for the Magic, their record and playoff seeding have taken a hit because of it.
Orlando now has their two leading scorers back for the playoff push, with Banchero averaging 24.2 points and Wagner averaging 25 points per game on the year.
The specialty of this Magic team is on the defensive end, as they allow the fewest points per game to opponents (105.9) in the NBA. It's a whole different story on the offensive end, as they score the fewest points per game (104.2) in the NBA.
While those offensive numbers may be skewed due to Banchero and Wagner missing 54 games combined, the offense outside of the two leaves a lot to be desired.
Orlando Magic star forwards Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero scored or assisted on 81 of the team’s 113 points last night in a loss against Toronto. They accounted for nearly 72% of the teams entire offense
— Fawzan Amer (@FAmer__) March 5, 2025
The season series between the Celtics and Magic is split, 1-1, with the final game scheduled for April 9th in Orlando. In the first matchup, Orlando won 108-104 as Jayson Tatum did not play. In the most recent matchup on January 17th, Boston blew out Orlando by 27 points as Franz Wagner didn't suit up.
Assuming both teams are at full strength in a first-round series, the Celtics would be put to the test to navigate against one of the NBA's most stout defenses.
Finding scoring outside of Banchero and Wagner would be hard to come by for Orlando, as the Celtics' experience and versatility would overwhelm the Magic. Boston would take the series in five, at most six games.