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The play-in games are over and it’s time for the 2023 NBA playoffs to start, as the No. 2 seed Boston Celtics take on the No. 7 seed Atlanta Hawks in Game 1 of their first-round matchup on Saturday.
The game (3:30 p.m. ET start time) will be televised on ESPN, but if you don’t have cable, you can watch a live stream on FuboTV or DirecTV Stream, which both come with a free trial.
Those are the two best live stream options if you’re cutting cable, but there are also some other alternatives, so here’s a full guide on the different ways to watch the Hawks vs Celtics streaming live online:
Note: Heavy may earn an affiliate commission if you sign up via a link on this page
FuboTV
You can watch a live stream of ESPN and 100-plus other live TV channels on FuboTV, which comes with a free seven-day trial:
Once signed up for FuboTV, you can watch the Hawks vs Celtics live on the FuboTV app or FuboTV website.
Compatible devices for the FuboTV app include Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Fire Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Xbox One or Series X/S, Samsung TV, LG TV, any device with Android TV (such as a Sony TV or Nvidia Shield), iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet.
You can also watch the game live on the ESPN app or ESPN.com. You’ll need to sign in to a cable provider to watch this way, but you can use your Fubo credentials to do that.
DirecTV Stream
DirecTV Stream has four different channel packages: “Entertainment,” “Choice,” “Ultimate” and “Premier.” ESPN is included in every one, and you can pick any package and any add-on you want with your free five-day trial:
Once signed up for DirecTV Stream, you can watch the Hawks vs Celtics live on the DirecTV Stream app or DirecTV Stream website.
Compatible devices for the DirecTV Stream app include Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Fire Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Samsung TV, any device with Android TV (such as a Sony TV or Nvidia Shield), iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet.
You can also watch the game live on the ESPN app or ESPN.com. You’ll need to sign in to a cable provider to watch this way, but you can use your DirecTV Stream credentials to do that.
Sling TV
You can watch a live stream of ESPN and 40-plus other live TV channels via Sling TV’s “Sling Orange” bundle. This option doesn’t include a free trial, but it’s the cheapest long-term streaming service with the ESPN channels, and you can get your first month for half off:
Once signed up for Sling TV, you can watch the Hawks vs Celtics live on the Sling TV app or Sling TV website.
Compatible devices for the Sling TV app include Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Fire Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Xbox One or Series X/S, Samsung TV, LG TV, any device with Android TV (such as a Sony TV or Nvidia Shield), airTV Mini, Oculus, Portal, iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet.
You can also watch the game live on the ESPN app or ESPN.com. You’ll need to sign in to a cable provider to watch this way, but you can use your Sling credentials to do that.
Hawks vs Celtics Game 1 Preview
When the final standings shook out for the Eastern Conference in the 2023 season, the Boston Celtics sat in the No. 2 spot with a record of 57-25. The Atlanta Hawks, who actually finished 8th, nabbed the 7 spot by defeating the Miami Heat in the play-in game and will now take on the Celtics in a best-of-seven series.
During the regular season, the two teams played each other three times, including a game just a week ago on April 9, and the Celtics won all three games by an average of 13 points, though each time they played, the Hawks closed the gap, losing the final game by only six points. Now the Hawks and their brand-new head coach Quin Snyder will see if they can earn some Ws over the Celtics in the playoffs.
After their most recent game against the Hawks, first-year Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla said in a press conference that he has talked to people about preparing for the big stage of the playoffs, but it’s still about the fundamentals.
“I talked to a lot of people over the year to help me prepare for this moment from an experience [standpoint] … as big as the quote-unquote playoffs are, I still think the simple things are the most important and We can sit up here and talk about sub-patterns and match-ups and things that have an affect on the game, but at the end of the day, you know, transition defense, turnovers, out-shooting your opponents, free throw rebounds, end-of-game, end-of-quarter situations … everyone’s gonna be caught up in playoff basketball, but the main things are the main things. How we manage the game, how we win the details of the game,” said Mazzulla.
He also said that the team is ready and he’s proud of them for accomplishing the goal they set early on in the season.
“Our guys are in a good place. Our goal was to be a well-balanced team and we finished top two or three in both offense and defensive, so we accomplished our goal in maintaining a competitive nature and a mindset about us, achieved our goal of being a well-balanced team and now we have to re-create the mindset that we had last year, that we had coming into the season and that we had throughout the season to play at our best for as long as we possibly can,” said Mazzulla.
The Boston Celtics vs Atlanta Hawks best-of-seven playoff series starts with game one on Saturday, April 15 at 3:30 p.m. Eastern time on ESPN.
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Hawks vs Celtics Game 1 Live Stream: How to Watch for Free