The 2025 NBA Cup — the league’s third iteration of the in-season tournament that launched in 2023 — kicks off Friday night with the first games of group play. The Celtics are in Group B along with the Philadelphia 76ers, Detroit Pistons, Orlando Magic and Brooklyn Nets, and began the group stage Friday night with a 109-108 win over the Sixers.

BOSTON -- The Celtics suffered their worst loss of the season on Saturday night as a well-rested Rockets squad crushed Boston 128-101 at TD Garden. The Rockets ended the Celtics’ three-game winning streak with the convincing win as they took a 13-point first quarter lead and did not look back, leading by as many as 36 points in the convincing rout.

The good news for the Celtics is that the schedule is finally going to open up a bit. And while it’s tough to say after a 27-point loss, all things considered, 3-4 isn’t the worst place to be.

NBA season, and the competition is already kicking up a notch. The Emirates NBA Cup is back for its third season as the league’s in-season tournament. The competition pins the league’s 30 teams into six groups of five (three in each conference) for the group stage before it advances to knockout rounds.

The Celtics earned their first win of the season Monday night as they continue to test their newcomers, including Josh Minott and Hugo Gonzalez.

Jaylen Brown will shoulder more of the load this season while Jayson Tatum recovers from his Achilles injury. Maddie Meyer / Getty Images When the Boston Celtics won the 2024 NBA Finals, their starting lineup for that series consisted of Jrue Holiday ...

The Cavs are managing multiple injuries but hope to ride their recent momentum against a Celtics team without Jayson Tatum, who is sidelined with an Achilles injury. Tipoff is at 7 p.m. Eastern on ESPN.