Celtics misfire in home loss to the Magic

The Celtics fall to 2-2 as they missed 31-of-40 attempts from 3-point range in a 93-90 setback at the TD Garden on Monday night.

BOSTON – They have been shoved into the background of the region’s sports scene because of the championship bid by the Red Sox.

Good thing that has happened to the Celtics, considering the way they have looked in their debut week.

While the Red Sox have advanced to the World Series beginning tonight, the Celtics have gone just 2-2 with only one solid performance.

If the Celtics were front and center in the spotlight, there would be panic already building from fans of a team that has such high expectations in the 2018-19 season.

Four games in a week constitutes a very small sample size, but the fact of the matter is the Celtics has some chemistry issues to work out as they try to pick up where they left off last spring.

Two days after struggling past the New York Knicks, the Celtics had their problems with the Orlando Magic and were dealt a 93-90 loss at the TD Garden on Monday night as they failed to hold a lead.

The culprit this time was poor defense at the start and brutal long-range shooting (9 for 40 from 3-point range), allowing the Magic to stun the Celtics.

“We’ve got a lot of work to do. That’s for sure,’’ said Gordon Hayward, who along with Kyrie Irving missed a 3-pointer in the final seven seconds that would have forced overtime. “We didn’t play well in those (preseason games) either, so we have a lot of work to do. I have no doubt we will figure it out, but definitely have a lot of work to do.’’

The Celtics pulled away from the Philadelphia 76ers on opening night, then faltered down the stretch in Toronto before just getting past the Knicks. Then came the Magic, who had an answer for everything the Celtics did.

“We’re figuring it out,’’ said Al Horford. “It’s a day-to-day thing and it’s us understanding what we all need to do to be successful and it takes time.

“There are times that we look really good and times that we don’t look good at all, and we just have to keep learning and hopefully winning and learning as opposed to losing. But sometimes these type of things have to happen for the group to react.’’

The Celtics were unable to get anything going with their outside shooting and barely got to the foul line (making 7-of-9 free throws).

Jayson Tatum, Horford, Jaylen Brown and Irving (22 points, eight rebounds) were a combined 4 for 24 from 3-point range) while reserves Marcus Smart and Terry Rozier went 2 for 9 from that distance.

The ball was moving, but the shots weren’t falling and the Celtics became reliant on the 3-pointer. There will be no smooth start to the season for the Celtics, who are getting Hayward and Irving back in the lineup after their injuries a year ago.

“I’ve been on a team where we’ve had the target on our back and it takes some getting used to,’’ said Irving. “It really does. I think sometimes it’s a little unfair the expectations we have of our young guys and guys who have never been through things like this before.

“The expectations to play at a certain level every single night is demanding. It’s a challenge for me to figure out where do I fit in. Everybody else does enough of the pressure for us. I just try to keep everybody else calm and myself calm and just realize it’s a long season.

“Nights like this, you take it as a hit on the chin as a learning thing and move forward. Obviously the excitement is now dwindling and now we can finally just start playing basketball where the game becomes fun.’’

The Celtics kept searching for answers against the Magic, who led by as many as 13 points, then wound up with a chance to tie the game on the final possession. But Irving missed from the right corner, and after a Horford rebound, Hayward missed just before the buzzer.

“We had two good looks, myself and Gordon,’’ said Irving. “It shouldn’t have come down to that. They played a solid game, but we should have won that game based on the open looks we had.’’