On April 24, Beijing time, the NBA playoffs continued, the Nets returned home to meet the Celtics, the first quarter of the two teams on the tight score, Tatum single quarter to get 10 points, the Celtics 30-25 lead.
It was one of the most watched first-round showdowns in the East, with both teams star-studded, with the Celtics no. 2 and the Nets no. 7, though the regular season was affected by injuries. In the first two games, the Celtics won two consecutive games at home, but the gap between the two games was very small, Durant's state was average, and returning to the home nets could not be lost.
The Nets started: Irving, Curry, Brown, Durant, Drummond. The Celtics started: Smart, Jaylen, Tatum, Horford, Theis. In the first quarter, Irving scored first, Brown steals a quick attack score, the Nets started 4-0, Theis scored first for the Celtics, Brown hit a three-pointer, Durant then hit a three-pointer, and the Nets led 12-5.
The timeout came back, Tatum hit a three-pointer, then hit two more free throws, then Tatum hit another three-pointer, the Celtics came back 13-12, and Nash quickly called a timeout. The two teams alternated points to ascend and alternate to take the lead, with Smart hitting a three-pointer, White scoring a one-stop layup and the Celtics playing a wave of 7-0, 26-20 to overtake the scoreline.
Brown hit a three-pointer to stop the bleeding, and Pregart hit a mid-range shot to give the Celtics a 30-25 lead in the first quarter. Tatum scored 10 points in the first quarter, Smart 6 and Brown 4. On the Nets side, Brown had 10 points, Durant 5 and Irving 8.