Examining the excitement around the Celtics’ next big games

Examining the excitement around the Celtics’ next big games.

The article examining the excitement for the Celtics’ next big games first aired on NBC Sports Boston.

The Dallas Mavericks visit the Boston Celtics on Friday night to begin an exciting five-game stretch. The Celtics don’t necessarily need to worry about stacking victories during this run because they are on a nine-game winning streak and have an eight-game lead over the opposition in the Eastern Conference.

Our query is this, though: Is there a game in this upcoming batch where winning would feel marginally better than losing?

Over the course of these next five games, a lot of eyes will be on the Celtics. Let’s outline the path ahead and any further incentive Boston could find to begin March with a win in each of these games:

March 1: Celtics vs. Mavericks
The Jayson Tatum vs. Luka Doncic matchup occurs just twice a year, and the matches have often been quite entertaining. With all the talk around the MVP contest, Tatum will have another opportunity to highlight his contributions to winning outside of the scoring column on Friday.

Tatum’s average against Doncic in their last five meetings has been 31.6 points, 12 rebounds, and 5.2 assists. This includes a 39-point, 11-rebound performance on January 11th during Boston’s victory in Dallas.

Grant Williams was expected to make his TD Garden comeback on April 12, but sadly, it will have to wait until one of the last regular season games against Charlotte.

Forsberg’s hype scale: two stars out of five. Mavs, who are still in play-in area in the competitive Western Conference, are playing better and need victories. If Doncic is healthy, it’s a good test for Boston. Not to mention that Kyrie Irving is in town, if that helps.

March 3: Celtics vs. Warriors
Yes, the Warriors have had some difficulties this season. At the trade deadline, some people urged them to blow it up. They’ve won 10 of their previous 12 games, but they’re also the freaking Warriors.

Golden State is still the same team that intimidated the Celtics in the 2022 NBA Finals, despite Boston’s new-look roster. In the aftermath, Boston is 1-2 versus the Warriors, including two thrilling overtime games.

Forsberg has a 4.5 out of 5 star hype index. The Celtics will have a chance on Sunday to demonstrate their evolution since 2022. Another twist to this matchup is that Kristaps Porzingis did not play in the first meeting of the season.

The Celtics don’t have any games that must be won right now, but this one may feel more satisfying than any other possible victory in this group.

March 5: Cavaliers vs. Celtics
With an eight-game advantage over their closest rivals, the Celtics have already established their supremacy in the East. (Before Friday’s play, Cleveland and Milwaukee were tied for second place.)

Even though the Cavaliers have been extremely hot in 2024—winning 17 of 18 games in a month that ended in early February—they haven’t come close to catching the Celtics. The Cavaliers still need to demonstrate that they are more than simply a strong regular-season club since the road has become more difficult since then and they were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs last year.

Forsberg has a three-star hype index. In the middle of December, the Boston Celtics defeated the Cavaliers both nights of a home-and-home series. The Cavs are significantly healthier and will be highly motivated to defeat the Celtics, who could alternatively be preoccupied with their remaining games against all of their Western Conference opponents.

This game takes on additional significance if the Celtics are driven to demonstrate their dominance in the East. The.

While the Celtics are still stinging from losing their first meeting in Boston in January, Denver is quietly gaining ground on them for the top spot in the West.

Forsberg has a five-star hype meter. This seems to be the most important game left on Boston’s schedule. You may argue that Milwaukee should visit later this month, especially now that the Bucks are starting to turn things around.

The Denver defeat yielded numerous advantages for the Celtics. Their ability to find pairings in the aftermath has improved significantly. The Celtics should have a lot of motivation for this one, and Tatum might make a stronger case for more consideration if he wants to sneak up the MVP voting.

March 9: Suns vs. Celtics.