Magic vs Celtics Prediction, Pick Today | Friday, Dec. 15

Here's everything you need to know about Magic vs. Celtics on Friday, Dec. 15 — our expert prediction and betting picks for today.

The Celtics will put their unblemished home record (12-0) on the line when they host the Magic on Friday night. And while Boston's 18-5 start to the campaign is undoubtedly impressive, there's always a worry that some complacency can start to set in.

However, I suspect the Magic will have the full attention of a Celtics team that's surprisingly lost four straight games in this series. Moreover, Orlando won the last two meetings by 15 or more points.

Although I've been a protagonist of Orlando over the past few seasons, I'll explain why this situational spot could be problematic against a Celtics unit they've seemed to dominate in recent memory.

Let's get to our Magic vs. Celtics prediction and pick.

As good as the Celtics have been this season, you could easily argue that the Magic has been even better. The Magic opened with a  35.5 win total at DraftKings on July 13 and are on pace for 57 wins based on their early 23-game sample.

They received a nine-game bump after going over their win total of 26.5 games and posting a 34-48 mark in the 2022-23 campaign. Just two seasons ago, the Magic had the second-fewest wins (22) in the league.

Being one of the league's worst teams allowed Orlando to pick at the top of the NBA Draft. There's no question the Magic have selected wisely, but they've also been able to lean on their defense while their offense continues to take shape.

Over the past two seasons, the Magic went from 17th (110.6 points allowed per 100 possessions) in defensive efficiency to third (105.1 points allowed per 100 possessions), according to TeamRankings.

And it's their perimeter defense that could potentially trouble Boston. Orlando ranks 6th in limiting opponents to 32.3 3-point attempts per game. Orlando also ranks sixth in opponent 3-point field goals (11.5 allowed per game).

The Celtics make no secrets about how they intend to attack the opposition. Their strategy is to spread the floor and bombard their opponents with 3-point shots.

Boston leads the league in 3-point attempts (42.7 per game), and ranks second in 3-pointers made (15.6 per game). All five Celtics starters can stroke it from behind the arc.

Having that perimeter threat is why the Celtics opted to trade for Kristaps Porzingis.

What's been impressive about the Celtics thus far is that they've improved defensively. Their efficiency in points allowed per 100 possessions is down to 106.8 from 108.6 last season.

They're also rebounding better as a team, ranking fifth with 54.9 per game — an increase from 51.8.

Last season, the Celtics' 6.7 net rating was the highest in the league. Through 23 games, it's up to 8.4. The numbers suggest this Celtics team is even better and shouldn't be taken lightly.

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As good as both teams have performed this season, the situational spot doesn't bode well for the Magic. Orlando enters this matchup after last playing on Monday.

In contrast, the Celtics will be on short rest and playing the second leg of a back-to-back.

I prefer to back a potentially more irritable Boston team instead of an Orlando contingent that might not be up to game speed after taking advantage of some extra rest. There's also the four-game losing streak in this series against the Magic that the Celtics will be looking to snap.

According to our Action Labs database, when the Celtics play on the second night of a back-to-back against a team they previously lost to, they're 81-51-3 (61.4%) against the spread for 26.08 units.

My model makes the Celtics closer to an 8-point favorite, so I'll lay the 5.5 points with them at betPARX.

Pick: Celtics -5.5 (-113)