Game 3 in Orlando was supposed to be a statement from the Boston Celtics—a chance to put the series in a chokehold. Instead, it turned into a battle of bruises, blood, and blown opportunities. And while Jayson Tatum made his return and dropped 36 points in a gritty effort, the Celtics crumbled late in a 95-93 loss to the Magic that now has the series sitting at 2-1.

Tatum, who missed Game 2 with a right wrist bone bruise, gave everything he had. He looked aggressive, drove hard to the basket, knocked down jumpers, and showed flashes of the MVP-level play Celtics fans have come to expect. But his night was also laced with caution and discomfort—something that became clearer postgame when he gave a crucial update on his status. “I’m just dealing with pain tolerance,” Jayson Tatum said. “The treatment and stuff has been progressing every day and I felt like I could try to go out there and play. I mean, I was out there, so I was dealing with it—it was cool.”

Cool, maybe. But not fully right.

Tatum finished with 36 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 assists in 39 minutes, but also had seven turnovers—many of them unforced, clearly a byproduct of discomfort with that wrist. When Orlando cranked up the pressure in the second half, Boston’s offense stalled, and Tatum’s handle didn’t look as sharp.

And while Tatum battled through the pain, his teammates weren’t so lucky.

Jaylen Brown—playing through a nagging left knee impingement—was taken out late in the game after taking a hard fall on his shooting wrist following a flagrant foul. He scored 19 points on 7-of-14 shooting, but didn’t return in the final minutes when Boston desperately needed shot creation.

The injuries didn’t stop there. Kristaps Porzingis, who got hit in the forehead early in Game 2, was ineffective again, finishing with just seven points and going 0-for-3 from three. He hasn’t hit a single three-pointer in this series—0-of-8 through three games—and posted a team-worst -16 plus-minus in Game 3. The Celtics have tried to play through it, but it’s clear that Porzingis isn’t moving well, and Orlando’s physicality is bothering him.

Jrue Holiday? Still out with a hamstring injury. And Boston’s bench isn’t built to sustain this many missing or compromised bodies.

Physical Orlando throws Tatum off his game

That physicality was front and center Friday night. The Magic weren’t just playing defense—they were bumping, grabbing, and sending Celtics to the floor. And it’s having a compounding effect.

When asked about Orlando’s rough-and-tumble approach, Jayson Tatum shrugged it off in classic fashion: “Just get up. Ain’t that what Joe [Mazzulla] told me? Get up, move on to the next play, protect yourself, and just focus on the game.”

It’s a nice mentality, but the injuries are piling up, and the Celtics looked visibly worn by the end of this one.

The turning point came in the third quarter, when Boston suffered its worst offensive quarter of the entire season—just 11 points on 3-of-18 shooting. The ball stopped moving, players looked tired, and the Magic seized the moment. Franz Wagner scored 32 points on the night, and Paolo Banchero added 29, punishing Boston with strong drives and timely buckets.

Despite all that, Boston had a golden chance at the end. Down two with 0.3 seconds remaining, Derrick White tried to lob a pass for a tip-in, but the ball hit the rim—a live-ball turnover with no shot attempt to show for it. Just like that, Game 3 slipped away.

This wasn’t just a loss—it was a physical and emotional gut punch. The Celtics have already been dealing with injuries, but now they’re seeing their core players breaking down mid-series. Tatum’s wrist, Brown’s knee and wrist, Porzingis’ shooting woes, and Jrue Holiday’s hamstring have all thrown Boston’s championship plans into early turbulence.

The good news? They’re still up 2-1. They still have the best player in the series. And Jayson Tatum, wrist pain and all, still looked like himself—at least on offense.

The bad news? The Magic smell blood. They’ve gone toe-to-toe with the top seed in the East, they’re thriving on physicality, and they’ve rattled Boston’s rhythm. If the Celtics can’t get healthy fast—or at least stay upright—this first-round series might go from routine to regret.

Game 4 tips off Sunday night at 7 p.m. ET in Orlando. And if Boston wants to avoid a Game 5 full of pressure, they’ll need Jayson Tatum to play like a star… and maybe throw in a prayer to the basketball gods for a healthy lineup.