The Boston Celtics are once again in the NBA playoffs for the ninth straight season, but they have some unfinished business. After losing in the NBA Finals last year, the C's are looking to make another deep playoff run in order to capture an elusive 18th championship. But before any title talk can occur, Boston will have to focus on its first-round opponent, the Atlanta Hawks.

Although many pundits believed Boston would face off against Miami to open the postseason, the Hawks shocked the world and swiped the seventh seed from them in the play-in tournament.

The Hawks will attempt to play spoiler again versus the Celtics, as a series win over the No. 2 seed would be a significant upset. However, Boston is a top-two seed in a loaded Eastern Conference for a reason.

So, here are three reasons why the C's will take care of business against the Atlanta Hawks in the first round of the 2023 NBA playoffs.

3. The Celtics' superior star power

The All-Star tandem of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown has dominated all season for the C's.

Tatum put up a career-high 30.1 points per game, which is more than anyone has averaged in franchise history. Plus, Brown notched a career-best 26.6 points per game while shooting an impressive 49.1% from the field.

Together the dazzling duo had 12 games in which they each scored 30 or more points. No other pair of teammates in NBA history has done that since the legendary Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal with the Los Angeles Lakersmore than 20 years ago.

Put simply, the Celtics have terrific star power with Tatum and Brown.

As for their opponents, Trae Young is also a talented two-time All-Star who can score and assist with the best of them. Yet, the Hawks' next-best player is probably 2022 All-Star Dejounte Murray. The first-year Hawk is skilled in his own right, but he's not quite on the level of Tatum or Brown.

While Young and Murray match up pretty nicely with Tatum and Brown on the offensive side of the ball, defense is another story. Tatum and Brown are solidified two-way players who can use their size and speed to stay with anyone. Young, on the other hand, is listed at a generous 6-foot-1 and frequently targeted by opposing offenses.

2. The Hawks have lacked consistency

The 2022-23 campaign was the definition of average for Atlanta.

To finish the season, the Hawks went 26-26 against the East and 15-15 against the West, leaving them with a perfectly mediocre 41-41 record.

Over the course of the year, Atlanta struggled to string wins together. The Hawks had only one winning streak that went over four games and just two winning streaks that spanned more than three games. Essentially, they couldn't find their rhythm for the majority of the season.

Conversely, the C's posted five winning streaks that lasted four games or more. What's even more impressive is they never let a losing streak go longer than three games all season.

The Hawks are going to have to be more consistent than they've been all year if they want a shot at upsetting Boston. So far, they haven't shown that they're capable of that.

1. Boston boasts a better defense

The C's impressive playoff push last season was in large part due to their stout defense. This season, Boston has relied more on its high-scoring offense, yet that doesn't mean its defense isn't solid.

Boston holds the league's second-best defensive rating, per NBA.com/stats. Meanwhile, Atlanta is in a subpar 22nd place on the list.

Furthermore, the Celtics allow around 111.4 points per game, which is the fifth-fewest in the league. The Hawks allow 118 points per game to their opponents, which is better than just six teams all year (and they're all non-playoff teams with the exception of Sacramento).

Overall, the odds are stacked against Atlanta. The Hawks lack home-court and failed to beat the Celtics in any of the teams' three meetings during the regular season.

However, the Green Team can't underestimate their opponents. The Hawks just embarrassed a tough Heat team in Miami, and they'll be hungry to prove the doubters wrong again in the playoffs.