Celtics first No. 1 seed in 24 years to start playoffs 0-2
Securing the top seed in the Eastern Conference and home-court advantage throughout the playoffs doesn't mean a heck of a lot right now for the Boston Celtics.
After losing 111-97 to the Chicago Bulls Tuesday night on their home floor, the Celtics now find themselves with their backs against the wall in a major way as their opening-round series moves to The Windy City for Games 3 and 4.
The last time a No. 1 seed dropped the first two games to a No. 8 seed was in 1993 when Charles Barkley's Phoenix Suns battled the Los Angeles Lakers. The first round was only a best-of-five at the time, with Phoenix eventually eliminating the Lakers by taking three straight.
It's not out of the realm of possibility for Boston to complete a comeback and bounce the Bulls, though, even with three of the next four games at United Center. There have been 18 other instances in league history where a team has trailed 0-2 in the postseason, only to rally and take the series.
Year | Winner | Loser | Round |
---|---|---|---|
1969 | Boston | Lakers | NBA Finals |
1969 | Lakers | San Francisco | West Semis |
1971 | Baltimore | New York | East Finals |
1977 | Portland | Philadelphia | NBA Finals |
1993 | Chicago | New York | East Finals |
1994 | Houston | Phoenix | West Semis |
1995 | Houston | Phoenix | West Semis |
2004 | Lakers | San Antonio | West Semis |
2005 | Dallas | Houston | First Round |
2005 | Washington | Chicago | First Round |
2006 | Miami | Dallas | NBA Finals |
2007 | Utah | Houston | First Round |
2007 | Cleveland | Detroit | East Finals |
2008 | San Antonio | New Orleans | West Semis |
2012 | Oklahoma City | San Antonio | West Finals |
2013 | Memphis | Clippers | First Round |
2016 | Portland | Clippers | First Round |
2016 | Cleveland | Warriors | NBA Finals |
(courtesy: Odds Shark)
Then again, Boston's recent history in Chicago hasn't been pretty, as it was on Nov. 8, 2014 when they last took a road game against the Bulls.