The most anticipated game of the 2024-25 NBA season to date will take place Tuesday night when the Boston Celtics host the Cleveland Cavaliers in an NBA Cup group stage game at TD Garden.
This wasn't labeled a "must-watch game" at the start of the campaign, but a lot has changed since then, primarily with the Cavs.
The Cavaliers have started the season 15-0. They are the third team to begin a season with 15 consecutive wins, which is the second-longest such streak in league history. The record belongs to the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors, who started out 24-0.
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There's more historical context to this Celtics-Cavs showdown. It is the first game in almost 29 years to feature a defending champion playing against a team that is on a win streak of 15-plus games, according to NBC Sports Boston's Celtics stat guru Dick Lipe.
The last time a defending champ played against a team with that kind of win streak was Jan. 30, 1996. The reigning champion Houston Rockets lost 98-87 to the Chicago Bulls, who earned their 16th win in a row. That Bulls streak eventually got to 18 wins. Chicago went 72-10 en route to its fourth title that season.
Here's another crazy historical note on this Celtics-Cavs matchup, courtesy of Dick Lipe:
"The combined winning percentage of the Celtics and Cavs is .897. There has one been one matchup in NBA history that featured a higher combined winning percentage this far into the season: 16-1 Seattle SuperSonics vs. 18-1 Houston Rockets on Dec. 11, 1993."
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The Celtics are 11-3 in second place behind the Cavs in the Eastern Conference standings. It's a huge game for both teams. A loss would make it almost impossible for the C's to reach the knockout stages of the NBA Cup. Boston lost to the Atlanta Hawks in its first group stage matchup on Nov. 12.
A win for the Cavs also would further prove that they are a real threat in the East.
However, the Celtics have won 11 of their last 13 games (including the playoffs) at home versus the Cavs dating back to December 2018, and they are outscoring Cleveland by almost 11 points per game in those matchups.
In fact, the Cavaliers' last loss was 188 days ago in Game 5 of the 2024 Eastern Conference semifinals at the Garden back in May.