The Celtics will open up their hopeful-championship run on Sunday afternoon against the Philadelphia 76ers.
After going 56-26 in the regular season and earning the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs, the Boston Celtics will open up postseason play on Sunday afternoon (1 p.m. ET) against the Philadelphia 76ers.
The 76ers won a play-in game against the Orlando Magic on Wednesday night to earn the No. 7 seed. This is a familiar playoff opponent for the C's, who have matched up with the 76ers a league-most 23 times in playoff history.
And the stats are certainly on Boston's side as they look to advance back to the Eastern Conference semifinals again.
Per ESPN Insights on social media:
Celtics have history on their side in their upcoming playoff matchup with the 76ers
Boston leads the all-time playoff series 15-7.
The Celtics have won six straight playoff series versus the 76ers.
Boston has a 4-0 series record in the first round under Joe Mazzulla. However, the 76ers went 2-2 against the Celtics in the regular season
Celtics vs. 76ers recent playoff history
2023: Celtics win in 7 games in Eastern Conference semis
2020: Celtics win in 4 games in first round
2018: Celtics win in 5 games in Eastern Conference semis
2012: Celtics win in 7 games in Eastern Conference semis
2002: Celtics win in 5 games in first round
1985: Celtics win in 5 games in Eastern Conference finals
The last time the 76ers beat Boston in a playoff series? 1982, when they won the Eastern Conference Finals in seven games.
Broadcast information
Some of the critical information for the first four games of the series was released late on Tuesday night.
Game 1: Sunday at 1 p.m. ET (ABC)
Game 2: Tuesday at 7 p.m. ET (Peacock)
Game 3: April 24 at 7 p.m. ET (Prime)
Game 4: April 26 at 7 p.m. ET (NBC)
Game 5: April 28
Game 6: April 30
Game 7: May 2
Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla reacts during the first half against the Orlando Magic at TD Garden. Paul Rutherford-Imagn ImagesOther information to note
--It's still unclear if 76ers big man Joel Embiid will play in this series - or how much - after getting an emergency appendectomy recently. He did not play in Wednesday's matchup against Orlando. He and Tyrese Maxey form one of the best 1-2 punches in the league, so if he plays, it certainly makes Philadelphia a more formidable opponent.
--The Celtics last won the NBA title in 2023-24, while the 76ers haven't won since 1982-83. The Celtics were eliminated in the Eastern Conference semis last year against the New York Knicks.
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