at 
Boston Celtics (4-5)  at  Orlando Magic (3-5)
Friday, November 7, 2025
7:00 PM ET
Regular Season Game #10  Road Game #5
TV:  NBCSB, FDSNFL, NBA-LP
Radio: Sirius XM, 98.5 Sports Hub, 104.5 The Beat
Kia Center


Probable Starters
Probable Celtics Starters
PG SG SFPF C
PG:  Derrick White
SG:  Payton Pritchard
SF:  Jaylen Brown
PF:  Josh Minott
C:   Neemias Queta 

Celtics Reserves
Anfernee Simons
Hugo Gonzalez
Jordan Walsh
Sam Hauser
Luka Garza
Baylon Scheierman
Chris Boucher

2-Way Players
Ron Harper, Jr
Max Shulga
Amari Williams

Injuries/Out
Jayson Tatum (Achilles) out
Xavier Tillman (personal reasons)  out

Head Coach
Joe Mazzulla 

Probable Magic Starters
PGSGSFPFC
PG:  Jalen Suggs 
SG:  Desmond Bane
SF:   Franz Wagner
PF:   Paolo Banchero
C:    Wendell Carter, Jr

Magic Reserves
Goga Bitadze
Anthony Black
Tristan da Silva
Jett Howard
Jonathan Isaac
Tyus Jones
Noah Penda 
Jase Richardon

2-Way Players
Jamal Cain
Colin Castleton
Orlando Robinson

Injuries/Out
Moritz Wagner (knee)  out

Head Coach
Jamahl Mosley

Game Notes 
The Celtics visit the Orlando Magic for the 2nd of 4 games for the Emerates NBA Cup.  This is the 1st of 4 meetings between these teams this season.  They will meet in Orlando again in 2 days on November 9.  They will meet in Boston on November 23 and on April 12.   The Celtics are 1-0 in NBA Cup play in Group B while this is Orlando's first NBA Cup game. 

The Celtics won the series 2-1 last season.  The Celtics won 1 game in Boston and 1 game in Orlando and the Magic won on game in Orlando.  The Celtics are 76-57 overall all time against the Magic.  They are 26-39 all time in games played in Orlando.  The Celtics are 12-10 against the Magiic in the playoffs, including a 4-1 win in last year's playoffs. 

The Magic have made a few changes since last season.  Their biggest move was to trade Cole Anthony and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and 4 first round picks to Memphis in exchange for Desmond Bane.  So far, Bane has struggled somewhat with his new team.  They signed Jamal Cain and Colin Castleton to 2 Way contracts.  They signed Tyus Jones as a free agent.  Finally, they traded for the rights to Noah Penda from Boston in exchange for the rights to Amari Williams and Max Shulga. 

After this game at Orlando, the Celtics will another game at Orlando on Sunday and then a game at  Philadelphia.  Then they have 2 games at home against Memphis and the LA Clippers.  Then it is one game on the road at Brooklyn before playing Brooklyn, Orlando, and Detroit at home. The home game against Brooklyn will also be an Emerates NBA Cup game. 

After this game, the Magic will play the Celtics at home on Sunday and at home against Portland.  They then head out on the road to play one game at New York before playing onr game at home against Brooklyn.  Then it's one game at Houston before a 3 game home stand against Golden State, the LA Clippers and New York.  Then it's a 3 game road trip through Boston, Philadelphia and Detroit. 

Jayson Tatum remains out for this game as he rehabs from the torn Achilles that he suffered in last year's playoffs.  Xavier Tillman will also miss this game for personal reasons.  For the Magic, Moritz Wagner has yet to debut this season and is expected to miss this game.  I'm expecting the Celtics to start the same lineup as they did on Wednesday.  I've listed the starters from the Magic's game notes. 

Key Matchups
vs
Josh Minott vs Paolo Banchero
Banchero is leading the Magic with 23.1 points, 9.5 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.1 blocks per game.  He is shooting 44.6% from the field and 24.2% from beyond the arc.  The Celtics need to stay with him on defense, especially in the paint.  They also have to box him out to prevent him from grabbing rebounds as he has been strong on the boards. 

vs
Jaylen Brown vs Franz Wagner
Wagner is playing very well for the Magic and is averaging 22 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.1 steals per game.  He is shooting 49.6% from the field and 39.4% from beyond the arc.  The Celtics need to keep him off the 3 point line and defend him well to avoid a big offensive game from him. 

Honorable Mention
Payton Pritchard vs Desmond Bane
Bane has struggled somewhat to begin the season with his new team.  He is averaging 13.9 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 3.5 assists.  He is shooting 41.4% from the field and 28.6% from beyond the arc.  His stats are down from the 19.2 points, 6.1 rebounds and 5.3 assists that he averaged last season.  The Celtics need to defend him well as he can break out at any time.   

Keys to the Game
Defense - Defense is always the key to winning games.  The Celtics were second in the preseason with a defensive rating of 100.2, so they are capable of playing good defense.  The Celtics are now 12th with a defensive rating of 112.7.  The Magic are 14th with a defensive rating of 114.3.  The Celtics picked up their defense against the Wizard and they need to keep that up and play tough lock down defense in this game. 

Rebound -  Rebounding may be the biggest key to winning right now since the Celtics' 5 losses are largely because they weren't able to rebound.  The Magic are 10th with 45.9 rebounds per game while the Celtics are 18th with 42.6 rebounds per game.   They simply have to fight harder to grab rebounds than the Magic.  Much of rebounding is effort as evidenced by Payton Pritchard grabbing 10 rebounds against the Pistons  and averaging 4 rebounds per game.  Every Celtic has got to crash the boards and fight for every rebound.   Their effort on the boards will make all the difference.

Effort and Energy -  I've already mentioned that the Celtics need to put out more effort on the boards but they have to play with more effort overall for all 4 quarters.  In their 4 wins, the Celtics played harder and with more energy than their opponents.  That has to be their identity this season.  They have to play harder on defense.  They have to rebound harder.  They have to play with energy and extra effort for every possession.  They can't allow the Magic to play harder than them.

To 3 or Not to 3 - The Celtics shot just 21.6% from 3 against the Jazz.  They are 29th in the league, averaging just 31.2% from beyond the arc.  It's not just one Celtic who is struggling to hit their 3's,  it is almost everyone on the team.  They need to work on their spacing and focus on their shooting.  If they struggle early in the game, they need to score in the midrange or in the paint and not continue to brick 3's the entire game.  Against the Wizards, they attempted fewer 3's and scored 52 points in the paint.  If the 3's still aren't falling, they need to go inside once again. 

Consistency - The Celtics have been able to build a lead in their losses.  They led by 13 against the 76ers, 8 against the Knicks, 17 against the Pistons and 14 against the Jazz.  However, they weren't able to keep or build on those leads.  Against the 76ers, they built a 24 point lead but won by just 1 point.   They need to play well on both ends of the court for all 4 quarters and not allow the Magic to build a lead or to overcome a Celtics' lead. The Celtics know how to play to win, but they have to play that way consistently and not just for 1 or 2 quarters.   

X-Factors
Road Game - The Celtics are playing on the road.  They are facing distractions of travel and playing in an unfamiliar arena in front of hostile fans.  Although, the last time the Celtics played in Orlando, there was a huge contingent of Celtics fans in the arena.  They need to shake off those distractions and keep their focus on playing the game. 

Officiating - Officiating can always be an X-Factor.  In some games, you don't even notice the referees and in other games, they seem to make the game all about them.  Some crews call the game tight and others let the teams play.  Some crews favor one of the teams while others call it fairly.  No matter how the game is called, the Celtics must adjust and not allow the officiating to take away from their focus.