Peacock Blog Peacock

How to Watch Boston Celtics vs. Indiana Pacers: Peacock NBA Monday

This week on Peacock, it's a battle between two of last year's biggest Eastern Conference contenders.

By Matthew Jackson
Neemias Queta of the Boston Celtics celebrates on the basketball court after getting a dunk

Watching how the NBA changes from season to season is always fascinating, especially when you're looking at the teams who were considered to be at the top of the game just last year. Some of these teams, like the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder, just seem to keep rising, while others come back for a new season with a long fight ahead of them. 

How to Watch

Watch NBA on NBC on NBC and streaming on Peacock

This week on Peacock, we get to check in with two such teams, as the 2024 NBA Champion Boston Celtics head to Indianapolis to face the 2025 Eastern Conference Champion Indiana Pacers. It's a tale of two very different teams, and you can stream it all live. 

RELATED: New Ways to Watch the NBA on Peacock

How can you watch the Boston Celtics vs. Indiana Pacers game on Peacock NBA Monday?

The Celtics and the Pacers are set to tip off at 7:30 p.m. ET on Monday, January 12 live from Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The game can be streamed live on Peacock, and marks the third matchup between the two teams so far this season, with both of the previous games going to the Celtics. 

The game will be preceded by NBA Showtime, Peacock's very own NBA on NBC pregame show, giving you all the latest information on this matchup and news from around the league. This will also be the only NBA on NBC game broadcast exclusively on Peacock this week, so be sure to tune in early. 

What to expect from Boston Celtics vs. Indiana Pacers on Peacock NBA Monday

Pascal Siakam #43 of the Indiana Pacers dribbles the ball while being guarded by Stephon Castle #5 of the San Antonio Spurs.

The Celtics and the Pacers entered the season in very similar places. Both teams were major Eastern Conference contenders throughout the 2025 playoffs, with the Pacers eventually winning the conference. More importantly for this season though, both teams lost stars to major injuries during last year's postseason. Right now, the Celtics don't expect to see Jayson Tatum on the court again until sometime this spring, while the Pacers' Tyrese Haliburton won't be around until early next season. 

RELATED: How to Watch the NBA on NBC and Peacock: Schedule, Tip-Off Times, and More

In the absence of these two stars, these two teams have gone down very different paths. The Celtics are still contenders, hovering in the Top 5 teams in the East right now alongside squads like the Pistons, Knicks, and Raptors, thanks in no small part to the leadership of perennial All-Star Jaylen Brown on the court. Meanwhile, in Indiana, three-time All Star Pascal Siakam has worked hard to pick up the slack for the Pacers, but they haven't seen the same results. Three months into the season, they have one of the worst records not just in their conference, but in the entire league. 

Does that mean the situation is hopeless for the Pacers? Absolutely not! This is the NBA, where any given night on the court can yield something surprising, dramatic, and flat-out fun, so tune in to see if Indiana can pull off an upset in front of a hometown crowd! 

NBA on NBC

The NBA is officially back on NBC and Peacock, with exclusive games every week across broadcast and streaming featuring some of the biggest stars in the game.

The action kicks off every week with Peacock NBA Monday, featuring exclusive games streaming only on Peacock. Then on Tuesday nights, check out NBC's Coast 2 Coast Tuesday, which features two marquee games in primetime. Once Sunday Night Football wraps up, the NBA will also take over weekends with Sunday Night Basketball, with a primetime showcase game every week to wrap up the weekend.

Check out the full schedule for every NBA game on NBC and Peacock this season right here.