Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Boston Celtics Schedule: Dates, TV Channels, Times For 2017 East Finals

The matchup for the 2017 Eastern Conference Finals is finally set following a second-round series that went the distance. The Boston Celtics defeated the Washington Wizards in Game 7 Monday night, earning the chance to dethrone the Cleveland Cavaliers before the 2017 NBA Finals.

The schedule for the upcoming series is simple. The two teams will face off every other night, with the start time and TV channel remaining the same for each contest. It’s a change of pace for both teams, especially the Cavaliers, who have only played sparingly since the playoffs began a month ago.

Because they’ve been so dominant this postseason, Cleveland’s off days have far outweighed their game days. Sweeping both the Indiana Pacers and Toronto Raptors, the Cavs have taken the court just eight times in the last 30 days. Cleveland had eight days of rest in between the end of the first round and the start of the second round, and they’ll play for the first time in 10 days when the conference finals start Wednesday night.

Unlike each of their previous series, Cleveland won’t have home-court advantage. Game 1 will be played at TD Garden in Boston because the Celtics finished two games ahead of the Cavs in the Eastern Conference standings. The Cavs ended the regular season with four straight losses to allow Boston to grab the No.1 seed.

It’s the first time since the 2015 conference finals that the Cavs will start a series against an East team without home-court advantage. Cleveland needed just four games to beat the 60-win Atlanta Hawks in that series.

Boston hasn’t played every other day like they will against Cleveland, but they haven’t had a ton of rest this postseason. Needing six games to defeat the Chicago Bulls in the first round, the Celtics had just one day off before starting their conference semifinals series against the Wizards.

The Celtics lost their first two games at home against the Bulls, but they’ve been dominant at TD Garden ever since. Isaiah Thomas and Co. have won five straight games in Boston, defeating their opponents by an average of 13 points.

The Cavs haven’t lost an Eastern Conference playoff series since LeBron James re-signed with the team in the summer of 2014. James hasn’t lost a series outside of the NBA Finals since 2010.

The Eastern Conference Finals won’t begin until two games in the Western Conference Finals have already been completed. The Golden State Warriors defeated the San Antonio Spurs in Game 1, and Game 2 is set for Tuesday night at Oracle Arena.

Here is the complete schedule for the 2017 Eastern Conference Finals, including the dates, times and TV channels:

Game 1 at Boston: Wednesday, May 17, 8:30 p.m. EDT, TNT

Game 2 at Boston: Friday, May 19, 8:30 p.m. EDT, TNT

Game 3 at Cleveland: Sunday, May 21, 8:30 p.m. EDT, TNT

Game 4 at Cleveland: Tuesday, May 23, 8:30 p.m. EDT, TNT

Game 5* at Boston: Thursday, May 25, 8:30 p.m. EDT, TNT

Game 6* at Cleveland: Saturday, May 27, 8:30 p.m. EDT, TNT

Game 7* at Boston: Monday, May 29, 8:30 p.m. EDT, TNT