Heading into their second-round matchup against the New York Knicks in the 2025 NBA playoffs, the Boston Celtics and their fanbase were very confident of their chances to advance. After all, the Celtics had the Knicks' number all season long, sweeping them in their season series, 4-0. And the first half of Game 1 proved to be more of the same, with the Celtics taking a 16-point halftime lead — with that lead of theirs even growing to as big as 20 points.

However, the Knicks did not make it this far by being a mere pushover. They cut the lead to nine heading into the fourth quarter, and they started the final period of regulation on an 8-0 run. The fourth quarter was a slugfest that saw no separation between the two sides at the buzzer, and in overtime, the Mikal Bridges show took over, with the Knicks wing sealing the 108-105 victory in their favor by stripping Jaylen Brown of the ball on the final possession.

While Celtics fans know that losing Game 1 is not the end of the world (although they did not lose a single Game 1 during their run to the championship last year), some fans are losing their cool on X (formerly Twitter) after the reigning champions relinquished what looked like a very comfortable lead against a team they had no trouble against this past season.

“This Celtics team could be an unbelievable team if they play four quarters hard. They just don't,” @ChipBolton5555 wrote.

“Celtics were playing at another level of a** tonight,” @shira_celia added.

“I will not crash out Ok i’m better!!!! Tatum was bad Brown was bad,” @Future_RN_21 furthered. “Figure your s**t out @celtics you’re better than this.”

“Celtics smfh wtf man,” @AlexCalheta_ expressed.

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“Celtics be doing loser a** s**t like giving up 20 point leads,” @1realbadman2 mused.

This Celtics team will have no panic

Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) shoots the ball against the New York Knicks in the third quarter during game one of the second round for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at TD Garden.
© David Butler II-Imagn Images

The Celtics' 2024 NBA playoff run is an outlier; they scarcely faced any adversity, losing just three games during their entire championship run and barely breaking a sweat, although they did run into some very close games against the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals despite it being a sweep.

But the road to the promised land is a winding one, and the Celtics, of all teams, would know that one loss in a series does not spell disaster whatsoever. And when their three-point shot begins to fall, they should be right back on track against a Knicks team that could run out of steam before the series is over.