Don't write off the Boston Celtics just yet.
The Celtics' hopes of winning back-to-back titles took a major blow Monday night in New York, when Jayson Tatum suffered a season-ending Achilles injury in a Game 4 loss that gave the Knicks a 3-1 lead in their second-round series.
Given that only 13 of 295 teams in NBA history have come back from a 3-1 playoff deficit (a 4.4 percent success rate) and that the Celtics just lost their best player, there's no way Boston can join that exclusive comeback club... right?
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SIGN UP HERE Well, the Celtics took the first step Wednesday by winning Game 5 without Tatum at TD Garden. And ahead of Friday's Game 6 at Madison Square Garden, there are a few stats that may make Knicks fans sweat a bit.
Consider these these stats for starters, courtesy of NBC Sports Boston stats guru Dick Lipe:
- The Celtics are 9-2 in their last 11 elimination games (chance to lose the series). No other NBA team has more than four wins during that stretch.
- Boston is 5-0 in its last five elimination games on the road.
- The Knicks are 2-5 in their last seven closeout games (chance to win the series) and are 4-9 in closeout games since 2001.
- New York is 0-5 in its last five closeout games at home.
The obvious caveat here is that the Celtics don't have Tatum, who delivered legendary performances in two of Boston's most recent elimination-game wins. His 16 points in the fourth quarter of Game 6 against the Philadelphia 76ers in 2023 rescued them from an early exit, and he put the team on his back the previous year in Milwaukee with 46 points on the road in Game 6.
But this is a resilient Boston team that's won without Tatum before; in fact, the Celtics are now 17-3 (including 2-0 in the playoffs) over the last two seasons when Tatum is sidelined. And while making a full comeback from down 3-1 is a steep challenge, the C's have fared quite well in this particular spot:
- Boston is 13-11 all time in Game 6 when trailing 3-2, and has won three of its last four Game 6s while facing a 3-2 deficit.
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For Celtics fans, the biggest reason for optimism might be the pressure facing the Knicks. The storied franchise hasn't reached the Eastern Conference Finals since 2000 and was in this exact spot last postseason (up 3-1 on the Indiana Pacers in the second round) before losing three straight, including Games 5 and 7 on their own floor.
The stars will be out at Madison Square Garden on Friday night with the hope of watching the Knicks finally get over the hump. But they'll have plenty of ghosts to contend with if the Celtics can rally for another win.
Game 6 tips off at 8 p.m. ET, with NBC Sports Boston's coverage beginning at 7 p.m. ET with Celtics Pregame Live.