Indiana Pacers vs Boston Celtics Preview & Best Bets - 12/22/2025
Updated July 9, 2026
The Boston Celtics will host the Indiana Pacers at TD Garden in a Monday night NBA matchup featuring two teams dealing with injured stars. Tyrese Haliburton and Jayson Tatum both suffered Achilles injuries in last year's playoffs and they will try to overcome that to get a win here. Before tip-off from Boston, you can find my breakdown of this contest below, including my Pacers vs Celtics prediction.
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The Celtics enter this contest off two straight wins, including a 112-96 victory over the Toronto Raptors in which Payton Pritchard delivered a standout performance. Pritchard scored 33 points while adding 10 assists and eight rebounds. Boston has won seven of their last nine games and has shown good depth even when dealing with roster uncertainties.
Jaylen Brown has been the team’s premier scoring threat, averaging 29.3 points per game. Derrick White’s perimeter shooting remains a key offensive piece this season as well. But Brown is questionable to play in this game due to illness and any absence for him could prevent the Celtics from firing on all cylinders offensively.
The Pacers have struggled this season, with a 1-12 record on the road and injuries continuing to plague their lineup. Indiana’s offense has ranked near the bottom of the league in scoring and efficiency, partly due to the absence of key playmaker Tyrese Haliburton, who is out for the season with a torn Achilles. Obi Toppin and Aaron Nesmith are also out, further limiting Indiana’s rotation from playing to its full potential. Pascal Siakam remains the team’s leading scorer, but is doing his best to carry a unit that is missing a ton of important players.
Player | Prop |
|---|---|
Jaylen Brown | Over 29.5 points |
Derrick White | Over 3.5 made 3-pointers |
Pascal Siakam | Over 22.5 points |
Score Projection: Pacers 104 – Celtics 123
Win Probability: Pacers 18%, Celtics 82%
I'm going to lay the points with the Boston Celtics at home on Monday night. The Celtics are 9-5 at home so far this season and they should be able to take care of business against a Pacers team that has been thoroughly outplayed on the road throughout the year. Boston will win by double-digits here and get their third win in a row.
Jay Sanin is the GM and Head of Sports at ATS.io. He has been writing about sports gambling since 2013, handicapping tens of thousands of sporting events. He plays sides and totals aggressively across most sports and is more selective in player prop markets. He does his own modeling across most sports, and his family is jealous of how much time he spends on his precious spreadsheets.
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