The Boston Celtics have secured the top seed in the Eastern Conference, so they could have lost against the New York Knicks and the rest of their final three games and still come out on top.
That’s probably the reason why the Celtics didn’t perform to their usual standard and allowed the Knicks to win convincingly, 118-109. While it’s true that Jalen Brunson and the rest of the roster were just clicking through all 48 minutes, it didn’t make sense for a team that won 62 games at that point to drop a game against the Knicks.
While some may argue that the Celtics were just taking it easy during the game, this post-game presser by Joe Mazzulla would convince you that it’s far from the case:
“Knicks are highly, highly desperate”
My brother you activated all five of your starters off the injury report for the third to last game of the season and the one seed clinched… 😭😭 https://t.co/ihjrk2Ro4s
— Collin Loring (@cologneloring) April 12, 2024
The Boston Celtics choked an easy win against the New York Knicks

It’s hard to determine just what happened for the Celtics to lose this terribly to the Knicks. We can talk about specific conditions that prevented the C’s from being their usual selves. The starters not playing together during the three games before this loss is an acceptable reason.
However, that doesn’t explain the poor shooting night Celtics fans had to endure. Not one of the Celtics’ starters shot for 45% or better throughout the game. Jayson Tatum was especially tough to watch as he only sunk five of his 13 shot attempts. If it weren’t for his seven free throws, his final stat line would have looked much worse.
The Celtics bench did their heavy lifting, with Sam Hauser and Payton Pritchard scoring 15 and 16 points, respectively. However, it was too little, too late for Boston as they had to watch the Knicks celebrate on their own floor.
The Knicks can make the Eastern Conference playoffs more interesting

Jalen Brunson is the clear superstar on the floor as the C’s failed to stop him from doing whatever he wanted on the floor. He finished the night with 39 points, two boards, and four assists on 65% shooting.
The rest of the roster followed suit to their leader’s actions. Donte DiVincenzo led the supporting cast with his 17 points, four rebounds, and four assists. Josh Hart put up an incredible effort on the glass as he made 16 boards to go with his 16 points and five assists.
While the win doesn’t put any serious weight on how the playoffs would play out, this question by Posting & Toasting’s Antonio Losada will make New York Knicks and Boston Celtics fans think:
Are the Celtics trying to help the Knicks catch the Bucks in No. 2 so it’s New York who ends up facing Philadelphia/Miami in the first round instead of Indiana? Are they trying to avoid any of those two Play-In teams in particular?
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