NBA Opening Night Live: Celtics-Knicks; Timberwolves-Lakers

The 2024-25 NBA season begins on Tuesday! Two blockbuster games – one featuring the NBA champion and the other featuring future Hall of Famer LeBron James – kick things off before other teams begin their campaigns on Wednesday.

In the first game on Tuesday, the defending champion Boston Celtics defeated the New York Knicks with a stunning 132-109 victory, in which the hosts set an NBA record for most 3-pointers (29) in a game. Before kickoff at TD Garden, the Celtics will unveil their record-tying 18th championship banner while accepting their title rings.

In the second game of the evening, Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves play at the Los Angeles Lakers, where James made NBA history by playing alongside Bronny James – the first time a father-son duo played together played a regular season NBA game.

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Takeaways

The Celtics are making the most of their special night

On these nights, the team that won their championship rings usually has a hard time staying focused. Instead, this night became one where the only drama was the absurd fourth-quarter attempts to break the all-time 3-point record, as Boston emphatically demonstrated Joe Mazzulla’s belief that this team can attack this season , as if it hadn’t won last year. For all the pressure on the Celtics last year, it’s fair to say that Boston has less pressure this year. Here’s how the Celtics played on Tuesday.

New York, on the other hand, spent its aftermath pointing out that it needs to be far better defensively. Considering the Knicks face the powerful Indiana Pacers at Madison Square Garden on Friday night, it won’t take long after a few days of film and practice to see how much better their defense can play. — Tim Bontemps

New York isn’t there yet after the Flat show

The result was emphatic, but the result itself shouldn’t have been. The Celtics, the defending champions and a club that can play well regardless of whether they have Kristaps Porzingis, came out and played like the dominant team they are, making 29 three-pointers in just over three quarters.

The Knicks may be able to compete across the board, but they’re still a group with some key players learning to play together. They are not at the level of Boston. (If that’s really what Boston is like, then maybe no one is.) But New York desperately needs to address its defense — something that will take time, even with the individual talent it possesses on that side of the ball. — Chris Herring