Celtics should want to play this team in 2nd round

After taking care of the Miami Heat in five games during the first round of the NBA playoffs, the Boston Celtics are currently playing the waiting game. 

Boston will play either the Cleveland Cavaliers or the Orlando Magic in the next round, but both teams are still locked in their first-round matchup — with the Cavs holding a 3-2 series edge going into Game 6 in Orlando on Friday night. 

Even with Kristaps Porzingis on the mend due to a calf injury, the Celtics should be tabbed as the favorites against either Cleveland or Orlando in the next round. 

But TNT analyst and NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley believes that the Celtics should be rooting for one team in particular in hopes of an easier matchup in the second round. 

“I know they prefer the Cavaliers because that’s the much easier matchup for them,” Barkley said on the TNT broadcast on Wednesday night. “That Orlando team, man, they got so many big bodies. They would really miss (Kristaps) Porzingis. … They can handle two big guys. Orlando’s got six big guys. When you watch that Magic team play you’re like, ‘Man, they got a bunch of big ol’ dudes.’ And that’s why I think they’ll miss Porzingis.”

The Celtics went 2-1 against the Cavaliers during the regular season, winning both games at TD Garden on Dec. 12 and Dec. 14 before dropping their rematch on the road, 105-104, on March 5. It was a rough night for Boston at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, as the Cavaliers overcame a 22-point deficit in the fourth quarter en route to the win. 

Even with that fourth-quarter letdown by Boston, the Celtics still should have enough talent to outlast a Cavs roster led by Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen, and Evan Mobley.

“It’s a much better matchup for them to play the Cavaliers, in my opinion,” Barkley added. “That Orlando team, they’re young and they’re coming. But their size will definitely, in my opinion, bother the Celtics. Not saying they would beat the Celtics. … The Celtics are not going to win a championship without Porzingis. I truly believe that.”