If these two old rivals come together in a single game, in the case of playing, it will be classic.
In a defensive struggle that ended in a Knicks mess, the Celtics lifted a four-point deficit in the fourth quarter and got a 101-99 victory at TD Garden on Wednesday. Marcus Smart got the hat-trick with 35 seconds left to break the tie.
Alec Burks missed a hat-trick with 22 seconds left and then locked in a drive in the lane with 10 seconds left to make up for the loss.
The Knicks are 2-8 in games decided by three points or less this season.
If the season ended now, the Celtics and Knicks would meet in the No. 7-to-8 tournament game in the new NBA format to qualify for the actual playoffs. The Celtics are now in seventh place with a 26-26 lead. The Knicks fell to eighth with a 25-27 lead, having lost five of their last six games.
This was a surprise, but the Knicks lost a seven-point lead in the final 8:12 with Smart going up the comeback, grabbing a ball of air underneath and putting it home for a big bucket in the absence of two minutes to finish.
The loss ruined a gem of play for RJ Barrett, who scored 6 of 6 triples to finish with 29 points. However, Barrett also committed an expensive turnover, losing his dribble in the left corner, which resulted in a quick throw from Jaylen Brown to put the Celtics in the lead on the 93-90 lead with 1:01 left.
Barrett tied the score with his fifth triple, but it wasn’t enough. Julius Randle added 22 points with nine rebounds, six assists and three steals.
Randle was fierce in the third quarter, with a transition barrier for the Cubs and propelled the Knicks to a 73-70 lead entering the final period.
Jayson Tatum scored 25 points and Brown added 32. Tatum did not play when the Knicks beat Boston by 30 points in January.