How the Celtics, led by Larry Bird, defeated the rival Lakers and Earvin Johnson to win what is possibly the greatest championship series in historyBy means of Professor Parquet
Even though both legendary teams are currently in the unusual position of simultaneously rebuilding, the recent spectacular overtime game between the Boston and Los Angeles rivals brought back memories of the best matchups between the two most successful teams in league histor
In their 68 NBA championships combined, the Celtics and Lakers have won 33 of them. Boston has a 9-3 advantage in Finals meetings with the Lakers. In basketball terms, nearly all of the five seven-game championship series were remarkable and even historic, with multiple barnburner matches.y.
The 1962 Finals included a thrilling game seven that ended in overtime, with Boston winning 110-107 when Laker guard Frank Selvy missed a last-second jumper.
The legendary Jerry West of the Laker team swiped a pass and made a driving layup at the buzzer to help LA win 117-115 in the third game of the same series. Elgin Baylor scored a Finals record 61 points in game five to lead the Lakers to an unexpected 126-121 victory away from Boston.
In the Finals of 1969, a game that would ultimately decide the careers of Celtic greats Bill Russell and Sam Jones came down to a single basket, helped along by a lucky bounce on a Don Nelson shot against Los Angeles.
In the Finals of 1969, a game that would ultimately decide the careers of Celtic greats Bill Russell and Sam Jones came down to a single basket, helped along by a lucky bounce on a Don Nelson shot against Los Angeles.
All three of the game-four thrillers in the 1980 Boston vs. LA championship series were among the best games in each of the three Bird vs. Johnson Finals, and they offered excellent basketball and drama.
Ironically, every one of those classics was captured by the road squad. In 1984, Boston prevailed 129-125 during overtime, and in 1985, they won 107-105 thanks to a Dennis Johnson 21-foot field goal right before the buzzer. In 1987, the Lakers overcame a last-second desperate triple at the buzzer by Larry Bird, 107-106, thanks to some questionable refereeing.
Even though the 2010 game seven slugfest ended in a 79-79 loss, it was played with an extraordinary level of energy and enthusiasm that brought back memories of legendary Celtic/Laker games.
