This one tough tactical choice has enraged the Boston Celtics

The series between the Boston Celtics and Orlando Magic is shaping up to be one of those first-round playoff matchups that feels destined to end quickly. It pits the reigning champions and heavy favorites to win the Eastern Conference against a team that had to claw its way through the play-in tournament after a season riddled with injuries.

But the Magic have something rare for a seventh seed: an elite defense. And they’re fully committed to using it, right up to the final buzzer—as was clear in Sunday’s Game 1.

The problem for Orlando, beyond the obvious talent gap (very much tilted in Boston’s favor) and the fact that the Celtics also boast one of the league’s top defenses, is that they simply can’t keep up offensively. Their best bet is to drag the game into a grind: slow the pace, raise the physicality, and embrace contact wherever it comes. They leaned into that strategy in the opener. And while it didn’t earn them the win, it might have earned them something else—Jayson Tatum is now questionable for Game 2 and potentially beyond due to a wrist injury.

The forward was hurt in the fourth quarter during a controversial play. Tatum went up for a dunk with both hands as Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Wendell Carter Jr. attempted to contest him. Carter, in trying to prevent the basket, grabbed Tatum’s arm too long, causing the Celtics star to fall awkwardly. Tatum braced himself with his hands and immediately clutched his right wrist in visible pain. The foul earned Caldwell-Pope a flagrant 1.

Al Horford, clearly frustrated, was the first Celtics player to confront the Magic guard. In a postgame press conference, Horford made his feelings clear: “Yeah, there was something extra—it was too much. It was the second or third time I’d attacked him like that. I don’t know what it takes to make plays like that. I guess it’s the playoffs, and things like this are going to happen more often.”

Tatum’s uncertain status only adds to the Celtics’ injury concerns, as Jaylen Brown continues to battle knee issues. Brown played in Game 1, scoring 16 points in 30 minutes, but he’s been in and out of the lineup for the past two months. He missed the final three games of the regular season and hasn’t played more than four consecutive games since February 8, sitting out 12 of the last 29 contests.

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That’s the one dark cloud hanging over an otherwise bright Celtics outlook.

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