When Do The NBA Playoffs Start For The Celtics? Boston’s Likely First-Round Timeline and Play-In Opponent Watch originally appeared on NESN. Add NESN as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The regular season is over, which means Celtics fans can finally start doing the fun part: scoreboard-watching, matchup-guessing and mapping out the first weekend of the playoffs.
Boston already handled the big piece of business by locking up the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference, so the only thing left is waiting to see who comes out of the East play-in picture and lands in the Celtics’ path. The NBA’s play-in tournament starts on April 14 and runs through April 17, while the first round of the playoffs opens on Saturday, April 18.
The NBA playoffs officially begin on Saturday, April 18. That is the opening day of the first round for the whole league, and Boston’s series will begin either that day or on Sunday, April 19, depending on how the league finalizes the schedule after the regular season ends. The NBA has not posted the Celtics’ exact Game 1 date or tip time yet.
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That part is locked in; the wait is almost over. The only thing Boston does not know yet is the opponent, because the Celtics’ first-round matchup comes from the play-in side of the bracket. With Boston locked in as the East’s No. 2 seed, they'll face the eventual No. 7 seed.
For Celtics fans, that means the real “playoffs start” feeling may hit a few days early. Tuesday night’s East 7-vs-8 play-in game between the 76ers and Magic is basically the first big scouting night for Boston, because the winner of that game becomes the No. 7 seed and heads straight into a first-round series against the Celtics.
The play-in tournament runs April 14-17. The format is simple:
The loser of 7-vs-8 then plays the winner of 9-vs-10 for the No. 8 seed
Boston is locked into the No. 2 seed in the East, so the Celtics know they’ll open the playoffs against the No. 7 seed, not the No. 8.
That picture got a lot clearer after Sunday’s games. Philadelphia grabbed the No. 7 spot, Orlando slid to No. 8, Charlotte finished No. 9 and Miami landed at No. 10, which means Boston’s first-round opponent will come from Tuesday’s 7-vs.-8 play-in game between the 76ers and Magic.
The Celtics still have to wait a couple more days for the name, but Boston’s reserves already helped shape the bracket by taking care of Orlando on Sunday and sending the Magic on the road instead of letting them host that play-in game.
Friday, April 17: final play-in games for the No. 8 seeds
Saturday, April 18: first round of the NBA playoffs begins
The NBA says the first-round schedule will be announced after the regular season ends. With Boston already locked into the No. 2 seed, TD Garden will be opening for playoff basketball on the first weekend of the postseason.
That is the Celtics fan version of the waiting game right now. Boston knows where it is, knows roughly when it will start and now just has to find out which play-in survivor is walking into the Garden first.