As the tragic tale goes, the Boston Celtics’ NBA Cup run did not make it out of the group stage. Boston won just two of its four games, landing them in second place in Group B.
Since the NBA Cup games actually count towards the regular-season standings (except for the championship game), teams that did not advance to play in the quarterfinals need two extra games added to their schedule each year. This is why when the NBA schedule comes out in August, there’s always a big gap for teams in early December.
The league uses the pool of eliminated teams to add the extra matchups each year.
Celtics get extra games vs. Bucks & Pistons
Late Friday night, the league shared the Celtics’ updated schedule. First, they’ll head to Fiserv Forum to take on the Milwaukee Bucks at 8 p.m. ET on Dec. 11, then four days later, they’ll host the Detroit Pistons at TD Garden for a 7 p.m. ET tip-off.
One nerdy aspect of these added games is the schedule anomalies they cause. For example, the first year the league did this, the Celtics ended up playing five regular-season games against the New York Knicks. The max number of games, even between division rivals, was always four to that point.
The Dec. 11 game in Milwaukee adds a third trip there for the Celtics, another anomaly. Typically, if there are more than three head-to-head meetings in a single season, the home court advantage is split down the middle. Instead, the Bucks will have a 3-1 split at home vs. Boston this year.
As for the Pistons game, there’s nothing abnormal about this one. In their four-game regular-season series, both teams now have two home games. Ironically, a Celtics home game against Detroit was the consolation prize for last season’s NBA Cup shortcomings, too.
These two “surprise games” should make for interesting matchups. Boston and Milwaukee have had a rivalry spanning back to the late 2010s. Plus, Giannis Antetokounmpo is always a must-watch -- even when his Bucks are struggling. So far this season, they’re just 8-12, currently losers of seven straight games. Albeit Giannis missed some time with a groin strain, adding him back to the lineup will be a welcome change.
Of course, the Celtics and Pistons just played an instant classic, with Boston snapping Detroit’s 13-game winning streak on Wednesday, 117-114. Why not run it back, right? It’ll be fun to get another look at the first-place Pistons, for sure.