Game ID: 42400115
Orlando Magic @ Boston Celtics
Tuesday, April 29, 2025 at 8:30 PM ET
TD Garden, Boston, MA
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
BOS 23 24 36 37 120ORL 27 22 13 27 89
BOS vs ORL ScoutingBOS vs ORL Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
BOS availability going into 4/20 · 6 days' restOUT Brown missed 3 since 4/09, returns tonight: 30 min (88% of 35)
BACK Horford back 4/11 after 2, 28 min since (97% of 28)
BACK Norris back 4/09 after 16, 15 min since (133% of 12)
NEW Kornet 18 to 24 min over the last 5
NEW Scheierman 12 to 26 min over the last 4
NEW Craig 10 to 19 min over the last 4
BOS availability going into 4/23 · 2 days' restBACK Brown back 4/20 after 3, 30 min since (88% of 35)
BACK Horford back 4/11 after 2, 26 min since (93% of 28)
BACK Norris back 4/09 after 16, 15 min since (133% of 12)
NEW Queta 13 to 21 min over the last 3
NEW Scheierman 12 to 27 min over the last 3
NEW Craig 10 to 15 min over the last 4
BOS availability going into 4/25 · 1 day's restOUT Queta missed 2 since 4/20, out tonight
OUT Scheierman missed 2 since 4/20, out tonight
BACK Brown back 4/20 after 3, 36 min since (104% of 35)
BACK Horford back 4/11 after 2, 28 min since (100% of 28)
BACK Norris back 4/09 after 16, 15 min since (133% of 12)
NEW Craig 10 to 15 min over the last 4
BOS availability going into 4/27 · 1 day's restOUT Queta missed 3 since 4/20, out tonight
OUT Scheierman missed 3 since 4/20, out tonight
OUT Craig missed 2 since 4/23, out tonight
BACK Brown back 4/20 after 3, 35 min since (102% of 35)
BACK Horford back 4/11 after 2, 30 min since (106% of 28)
BOS availability going into 4/29 · 1 day's restOUT Holiday missed 2 since 4/25, out tonight
OUT Queta missed 4 since 4/20, returns tonight: 4 min (29% of 13)
OUT Scheierman missed 4 since 4/20, returns tonight: 4 min (33% of 12)
OUT Craig missed 3 since 4/23, returns tonight: 4 min (44% of 10)
BACK Brown back 4/20 after 3, 37 min since (106% of 35)
BOS availability going into 5/05 · 5 days' restOUT Holiday missed 3 since 4/25, returns tonight: 39 min (126% of 31)
BACK Brown back 4/20 after 3, 36 min since (103% of 35)
BACK Queta back 4/29 after 4, 4 min since (29% of 13)
BACK Scheierman back 4/29 after 4, 4 min since (33% of 12)
BACK Craig back 4/29 after 3, 4 min since (44% of 10)
BOS availability going into 5/07 · 1 day's restBACK Holiday back 5/05 after 3, 39 min since (126% of 31)
BACK Queta back 4/29 after 4, 4 min since (29% of 13)
BACK Scheierman back 4/29 after 4, 4 min since (33% of 12)
BACK Craig back 4/29 after 3, 4 min since (44% of 10)
NEW Horford 28 to 34 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 5/10 · 2 days' restOUT Queta missed 2 since 5/05, returns tonight: 2 min (16% of 13)
OUT Scheierman missed 2 since 5/05, returns tonight: 2 min (18% of 12)
OUT Craig missed 2 since 5/05, returns tonight: 2 min (21% of 10)
BACK Holiday back 5/05 after 3, 36 min since (118% of 31)
NEW Horford 28 to 33 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 5/12 · 1 day's restOUT Hauser missed 2 since 5/07, out tonight
BACK Holiday back 5/05 after 3, 33 min since (106% of 31)
BACK Queta back 4/29 after 4, 3 min since (22% of 13)
BACK Scheierman back 4/29 after 4, 3 min since (25% of 12)
BACK Craig back 4/29 after 3, 3 min since (32% of 10)
NEW Horford 28 to 33 min over the last 5
ORL availability going into 4/20 · 6 days' restOUT Banchero missed 2 since 4/11, returns tonight: 42 min (121% of 35)
OUT Wagner missed 2 since 4/11, returns tonight: 36 min (107% of 34)
BACK da Silva back 4/09 after 3, 28 min since (129% of 22)
BACK Queen back 4/09 after 4, 18 min since (127% of 14)
BACK Howard back 4/09 after 4, 23 min since (196% of 12)
NEW Black 24 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW Joseph 13 to 19 min over the last 4
NEW Houstan 13 to 24 min over the last 5
ORL availability going into 4/23 · 2 days' restBACK Banchero back 4/20 after 2, 42 min since (121% of 35)
BACK Wagner back 4/20 after 2, 36 min since (107% of 34)
BACK da Silva back 4/09 after 3, 21 min since (98% of 22)
BACK Queen back 4/09 after 4, 18 min since (127% of 14)
BACK Howard back 4/09 after 4, 23 min since (196% of 12)
NEW Joseph 13 to 19 min over the last 4
NEW Houstan 13 to 24 min over the last 5
ORL availability going into 4/25 · 1 day's restOUT Howard missed 2 since 4/20, out tonight
BACK Banchero back 4/20 after 2, 43 min since (123% of 35)
BACK Wagner back 4/20 after 2, 38 min since (112% of 34)
BACK da Silva back 4/09 after 3, 21 min since (98% of 22)
BACK Queen back 4/09 after 4, 18 min since (127% of 14)
NEW Joseph 13 to 18 min over the last 4
NEW Houstan 13 to 23 min over the last 5
ORL availability going into 4/27 · 1 day's restOUT da Silva missed 2 since 4/23, out tonight
OUT Howard missed 3 since 4/20, out tonight
BACK Banchero back 4/20 after 2, 42 min since (121% of 35)
BACK Wagner back 4/20 after 2, 38 min since (112% of 34)
NEW Joseph 13 to 21 min over the last 4
NEW Houstan 13 to 18 min over the last 5
ORL availability going into 4/29 · 1 day's restOUT da Silva missed 3 since 4/23, returns tonight: 4 min (18% of 22)
OUT Bitadze missed 2 since 4/25, returns tonight: 2 min (12% of 20)
OUT Howard missed 4 since 4/20, returns tonight: 4 min (33% of 12)
BACK Banchero back 4/20 after 2, 42 min since (120% of 35)
BACK Wagner back 4/20 after 2, 39 min since (113% of 34)
NEW Joseph 13 to 26 min over the last 4
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 101 a night and allowing 93, shooting 43 percent and 34 from three, 24 free throws a game; Tatum at 30 and Brown at 23 a game. Without Holiday (2 straight). One day's rest. Orlando comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 97 a night and allowing 106, shooting 44 percent and 31 from three, 19 free throws a game; Banchero at 32 and Wagner at 26 a game. Without da Silva (3 straight), Bitadze (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 93 a night to Orlando's 106 and the glass, where Boston has been plus-3 a night and Orlando minus-4. Call it Boston 108, Orlando 99.
4/20 vs ORL 103-86 — BOS notes
BOS won 103-86. BOS shot 45% (37 of 82) to ORL's 42%, 16 of 37 from three, and went to the line 18 times to ORL's 11 — 13 points from the stripe to their 8. BOS turned it over 9 times to ORL's 15. White led with 30 (10 of 18, 7 of 12 from three); Pritchard added 19, Tatum 17. The hinge was Q3, 30-18: BOS came in trailing by 1 and left it ahead by 11, and the lead reached 19. BOS trailed 48-49 at the half and won the second half 55-37. Tatum was the night's best plus/minus at +23.
4/23 vs ORL 109-100 — BOS notes
BOS won 109-100. BOS shot 45% (36 of 80) to ORL's 48%, 12 of 37 from three, and went to the line 33 times to ORL's 24 — 25 points from the stripe to their 15. The glass went 46-34 for them. Brown led with 36 (12 of 19, 5 of 7 from three, 7 of 8 at the line); Porziņģis added 20, White 17. The hinge was Q3, 31-24: a lead of 3 became 10, and the lead reached 15. Porziņģis was the night's best plus/minus at +15.
4/25 @ ORL 93-95 — BOS notes
BOS lost 93-95. BOS shot 45% (33 of 74) to ORL's 41%, 9 of 27 from three. BOS turned it over 19 times to ORL's 13, and ORL turned those into 9 steals. Tatum led with 36 (10 of 22, 4 of 10 from three, 12 of 12 at the line); Brown added 19, White 16. Q2 was theirs, 32-18, turning a 4-point deficit into a 10-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 77-61 against them. They led by as many as 11. Porziņģis's -16 in 34 minutes was the worst on the floor.
4/27 @ ORL 107-98 — BOS notes
BOS won 107-98. BOS shot 44% (34 of 78) to ORL's 43%, 9 of 31 from three, and went to the line 32 times to ORL's 20 — 30 points from the stripe to their 14. Tatum led with 37 (10 of 25, 3 of 10 from three, 14 of 14 at the line); Brown added 21, Porziņģis 19. The hinge was Q4, 28-23: a lead of 4 became 9. Hauser was the night's best plus/minus at +13.
4/29 vs ORL 120-89 — BOS notes
BOS won 120-89. BOS shot 57% (43 of 76) to ORL's 38%, 13 of 24 from three. Tatum led with 35 (10 of 16, 4 of 5 from three, 11 of 11 at the line); Brown added 23, Pritchard 10. The hinge was Q3, 36-13: BOS came in trailing by 2 and left it ahead by 21, and the lead reached 34. BOS trailed 47-49 at the half and won the second half 73-40. Tatum was the night's best plus/minus at +34.
5/05 vs NYK — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 106 a night and allowing 94, shooting 47 percent and 38 from three, 26 free throws a game; Tatum at 31 and Brown at 23 a game. Without Holiday (3 straight). 5 days' rest. New York comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 105 a night and allowing 106, shooting 43 percent and 36 from three, 25 free throws a game; Brunson at 31 and Towns at 19 a game. It has lost the glass by 4 a night. Without Achiuwa (6 straight), Tucker (6 straight). 3 days' rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 94 a night to New York's 106 and the glass, where Boston has been plus-2 a night and New York minus-4. Call it Boston 111, New York 104.
5/07 vs NYK — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 107 a night and allowing 98, shooting 44 percent and 32 from three, 27 free throws a game; Tatum at 33 and Brown at 24 a game. It has won the glass by 4 a night. One day's rest. New York comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 108 a night and allowing 107, shooting 43 percent and 40 from three, 27 free throws a game; Brunson at 29 and Anunoby at 20 a game. Without Tucker (7 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Boston has been plus-4 a night and New York minus-4 and the arc, New York at 40 percent from three to Boston's 32. Call it Boston 111, New York 106.
5/10 @ NYK — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 102 a night and allowing 101, shooting 43 percent and 38 from three, 23 free throws a game; Brunson at 27 and Towns at 18 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has lost the glass by 4 a night. Without Tucker (8 straight). 2 days' rest. Boston comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 103 a night and allowing 96, shooting 42 percent and 31 from three, 24 free throws a game; Tatum at 29 and Brown at 21 a game. 2 days' rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, New York at 38 percent from three to Boston's 31 and the glass, where Boston has been plus-3 a night and New York minus-4. Call it Boston 107, New York 106, New York keeping it close.
5/12 @ NYK — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 102 a night and allowing 106, shooting 43 percent and 34 from three, 27 free throws a game; Brunson at 26 and Towns at 17 a game. Without Tucker (9 straight). One day's rest. Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 107 a night and allowing 96, shooting 43 percent and 34 from three, 23 free throws a game; Tatum at 26 and Brown at 21 a game. Without Hauser (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 96 a night to New York's 106. Call it Boston 109, New York 106, New York keeping it close.
4/20 @ BOS 86-103 — ORL notes
ORL lost 86-103. ORL shot 42% (34 of 81) to BOS's 45%, 10 of 27 from three, and got to the line 11 times to BOS's 18. ORL turned it over 15 times to BOS's 9, and BOS turned those into 13 steals. Banchero led with 36 (14 of 27, 4 of 7 from three, 4 of 6 at the line); Wagner added 23. Q2 was theirs, 31-22, turning a 8-point deficit into a 1-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 81-55 against them. Wagner's -15 in 36 minutes was the worst on the floor.
4/23 @ BOS 100-109 — ORL notes
ORL lost 100-109. ORL shot 48% (39 of 82) to BOS's 45%, 7 of 29 from three, and got to the line 24 times to BOS's 33. The glass went 34-46 against them. Banchero led with 32 (12 of 25, 2 of 6 from three, 6 of 11 at the line); Wagner added 25, Carter Jr. 16. Q4 was theirs, 29-28, the deficit cut from 10 to 9, but the other 3 periods went 81-71 against them. Carter Jr.'s -8 in 33 minutes was the worst on the floor.
4/25 vs BOS 95-93 — ORL notes
ORL won 95-93. ORL shot 41% (34 of 83) to BOS's 45%, 8 of 32 from three. ORL turned it over 13 times to BOS's 19. Wagner led with 32 (11 of 27, 3 of 13 from three, 7 of 12 at the line); Banchero added 29, Carter Jr. 10. The hinge was Q3, 24-11: ORL came in trailing by 10 and left it ahead by 3. ORL trailed 49-59 at the half and won the second half 46-34. Black was the night's best plus/minus at +16.
4/27 vs BOS 98-107 — ORL notes
ORL lost 98-107. ORL took 10 more shots (88 to 78), but shot 43% to BOS's 44%, 8 of 30 from three, and got to the line 20 times to BOS's 32. Banchero led with 31 (12 of 32, 2 of 6 from three, 5 of 9 at the line); Wagner added 24, Joseph 12. Q3 was theirs, 27-26, the deficit cut from 5 to 4, but the other 3 periods went 81-71 against them. Black's -16 in 18 minutes was the worst on the floor.
4/29 @ BOS 89-120 — ORL notes
ORL lost 89-120. ORL took 12 more shots (88 to 76), fed by 15 offensive rebounds, but shot 38% to BOS's 57%, 8 of 38 from three. Wagner led with 25 (10 of 22, 0 of 4 from three); Banchero added 19, Carter Jr. 12. Q1 was theirs, 27-23, but the other 3 periods went 97-62 against them. Carter Jr.'s -26 in 34 minutes was the worst on the floor.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
BOSAH A. Horford
BS B. Scheierman
DW D. White
JB J. Brown
JD J. Davison
JT J. Tatum
KP K. Porziņģis
LK L. Kornet
NQ N. Queta
PP P. Pritchard
PO Porzingis
SH S. Hauser
TC T. Craig
WA Walsh
ORLAB A. Black
CA C. Anthony
CH C. Houstan
CJ C. Joseph
FW F. Wagner
GB G. Bitadze
GH G. Harris
JH J. Howard
JI J. Isaac
KC K. Caldwell-Pope
PB P. Banchero
TD T. da Silva
WC W. Carter Jr.
BOS/ORL the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Defending champion Celtics close out Magic 120-89 for 4-1 playoff series win
BOSTON -- — When Magic star Paolo Banchero went to the bench with five fouls, the Boston Celtics pulled away and cruised into the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Jayson Tatum had 35 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds, and the Celtics abandoned their usual 3-point barrage to beat Orlando 120-89 in Game 5 of their first-round playoff series on Tuesday night.
The defending NBA champions will play either the New York Knicks or Detroit Pistons in the second round. The Knicks lead their series 3-2 despite falling 106-103 earlier Tuesday in New York.
“You just have to find different ways,” said Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla, whose team set NBA records in the regular season for the most 3-point baskets but made none at all in the first half — a first in almost four years.
“That’s what this series called for. Every series calls for different things,” Mazzulla said. “You have to be able to win in different ways on both sides of the ball.”
Franz Wagner scored 25 points, Banchero had 19 and Wendell Carter Jr . had 12 points and 10 rebounds for the Magic, who have not won a playoff series since Dwight Howard, Vince Carter and coach Stan Van Gundy led them to the Eastern Conference finals in 2010.
Boston fell behind by nine in the first half, and Orlando still led 51-47 early in the third quarter when Banchero picked up his fourth foul; just 79 seconds later, he picked up his fifth, a call that sent an apoplectic coach Jamahl Mosley to the officials, demanding a review.
The replay showed Banchero stepped into Jaylen Brown as he shot, and the Magic forward went to the bench, where he stayed for the rest of the quarter. In that time, Boston scored 31 of the next 40 points to open an 83-62 lead.
“It definitely swung the series. It definitely swung the game,” Mosley said. “All I saw is Paolo getting an elbow to the face or back into the face — and he got the foul. That was a game-changer right there. Your best player picks up his fifth foul in the third quarter. It’s tough to come back from that moment.”
Brown scored 23 points for Boston.
Tatum, who injured his wrist on a hard foul in Game 1 and missed Game 2, returned with three straight games of at least 35 points. He was 11 for 11 from the free-throw line — he has not missed a foul shot since Game 1 — and 10 for 16 from the field, making four of five 3-point attempts.
The Celtics attempted only six 3-pointers in the first half and made none. It was the first time they went into halftime without a 3 since 2021.
Tatum made their first 3-pointer early in the third quarter, but it would be another seven minutes before he made their second. During the regular season, they made one, on average, every 2 minutes, 42 seconds.