The Celtics turn up the heat, leaving Orlando in the dust—plus, a couple of clutch moments you’ll want to meme forever
It was a wild Wednesday night as the Boston Celtics outclassed the Orlando Magic 109-100 in their playoff face-off on April 23, 2025. The TD Garden was buzzing with energy, but unfortunately for the Magic, it wasn’t the good kind. If Orlando thought they’d be walking out with a W, they were sorely mistaken. Spoiler alert: it was a “next time, maybe” kind of game.
Boston’s defense was basically a brick wall, while Orlando looked like they were trying to figure out what a good defense even was. Jayson Tatum was in beast mode, dropping 35 points and flexing on the Magic like he was in a 2K MyCareer game. Seriously, at this point, Tatum’s moves might be considered unfair—he was out there draining shots from places that didn’t even seem legal. Every time Orlando got close, he was like, “Nope, not today.”
And let’s talk about that dunk by Marcus Smart. If you haven’t seen it, are you even an NBA fan? With the shot clock winding down and the Magic defense looking like they just woke up from a nap, Smart went full beast-mode on the rim. I swear, the rim shuddered after that one. Magic fans probably needed a moment of silence after witnessing that dunk because it was that savage.
Orlando’s top scorer, Paolo Banchero, was putting in work, finishing with a solid 27 points. But no matter what he did, every time he looked up, Tatum was right there, locking him down. It’s like trying to break into a vault where the vault door keeps changing the combination. Frustrating, right?
Then there was the wildest moment of the night. With the game winding down, Orlando’s coach seemed to take a page out of the “desperation playbook,” calling a timeout to make the team huddle up like it was the most important pep talk ever. I guess he thought magic would happen, but spoiler: no magic was on its way. Not tonight. It was like trying to get a Wi-Fi signal in a basement.
As the final buzzer sounded, Celtics fans erupted. I mean, they had every reason to. It was a full-on clinic, with Boston’s 109-100 victory making sure Orlando knew who was boss. The game had all the energy of a final buzzer celebration, even though it wasn’t quite that dramatic. But it did feel like a season highlight for Celtics fans.
All in all, Orlando will have to hit the gym, grab some new game plans, and maybe reconsider their life choices after this one. The Celtics? They’re already booking their next flight to the next round of the playoffs. And Boston fans? Let’s just say the party was definitely happening late into the night. Here’s hoping the Magic can at least remember what happened in Game 1 of the playoffs because Game 2 is just around the corner.