Celtics will hand Cavaliers their first loss and here's why

The Cavaliers travel to Boston on Tuesday night for a marquee matchup against the Celtics in Emirates NBA Cup group play — a clash shaping up as one of the most anticipated early-season games in recent memory. Cleveland, off to a historic 15-0 start, is just the fourth team to open with such a streak. They’ll face a formidable Boston squad, fresh off a championship campaign that featured a regular season +10.

7-point differential — the fifth-highest in league history — and an impressive 11-3 record in 2024-25. Who will emerge victorious in this high-stakes showdown between the Cavaliers and Celtics? Cleveland’s 15-game win streak has garnered universal praise, with the team’s offensive synergy standing out as a driving force. Head coach Kenny Atkinson, a protégé of Steve Kerr’s Golden State dynasty, has cultivated a culture of collaboration where players thrive on celebrating each other’s success.



“This is rare,” Atkinson remarked , following the Cavaliers’ victory over the Hornets on Sunday night. “The chemistry we have is incredible, built on a deep understanding and mutual respect. It’s truly beautiful to watch.

” While Cleveland’s 15-game win streak to open the season is undeniably impressive, it comes with a caveat. The Cavaliers have defeated just four teams above .500, and each victory came with mitigating circumstances.

They edged out a 7-6 Knicks squad still struggling to find its rhythm with two new additions to the starting lineup, topped an 8-6 Magic team playing its first contest without All-Star Paolo Banchero, secured a home win against the road-weary Lakers and beat the Warriors after their grueling victory over the Celtics. Overall, Cleveland has capitalized on the league’s second-easiest schedule to rack up wins, and aside from a single triumph against the Knicks, they have yet to face a healthy championship contender in a true road test. That’s set to change when Cleveland faces the Celtics in TD Garden.

The Cavaliers will step into a hostile environment, with an old-school Boston crowd ready to disrupt the rhythm of a Cleveland team that has been lights-out from the field all season. The Cavaliers have showcased remarkable shot-making throughout their 15-game win streak, converting an unsustainable 54.4% of their very tightly contested attempts (defender within 0-2 feet) and 56.

3% of their tightly contested attempts (defender within 2-4 feet) — both ranking second in the NBA. Their shooting success extends beyond connecting on contested looks, as seven core rotation players are significantly outperforming their career three-point averages . Ty Jerome leads the charge at a blistering 54.

1% from deep, followed by Caris LeVert (45.8%), Darius Garland (45.5%), Isaac Okoro (44.

4%), Donovan Mitchell (42.1%) and Evan Mobley (37.5%).

However, Boston features four of the top perimeter defenders in the league in Derrick White, Jrue Holiday, Jaylen Brown, and Jayson Tatum — a quartet that, when dialed in, wrecks offensive plans and creates roving no-shooting zones with their length, physicality and teamwork. Together, they’ll relentlessly pressure Cleveland’s players, forcing them to prove time and again that their shooting numbers aren’t merely an early-season outlier due for regression. On offense, the Celtics will look to spread the floor and launch from deep .

Tatum and Al Horford will drag Mobley and Jarrett Allen out to the perimeter, forcing the Cavs’ “twin towers” to defend in space and opening up driving lanes. Meanwhile, White, Holiday, and Brown will continuously challenge the undersized backcourt of Mitchell and Garland, pushing them into tough defensive rotations, tiring out their legs and taking away their offensive juice. The Celtics beat the Cavs 4-1 in last year’s playoffs, with both teams returning their main rotations from that series.

Despite Atkinson’s impact, a motivated Boston squad, playing at home and eager to assert themselves as the league’s top organization, could very well end Cleveland’s win streak with a resounding double-digit victory..