1986 Championship Victory

Lore & Background

The Celtics entered the 1985–86 season after losing the 1985 NBA Finals to the Los Angeles Lakers. In the offseason, president Red Auerbach traded Cedric Maxwell to the Los Angeles Clippers for Bill Walton and acquired Jerry Sichting from the Indiana Pacers. The Celtics surged to a league-best 67–15 record, powered by an NBA record 40 victories at home. In the playoffs, Boston needed just three games to defeat the Chicago Bulls in the first round, eliminated the Atlanta Hawks in five games in the second round, and swept the Milwaukee Bucks in the conference finals.

In Their Own Story

Inside the Houston Summit, the air grew heavy as the clock wound down in Game 6. The Rockets had fought hard, but the sheer weight of Boston's history crushed any remaining resistance. Robert Parish and Kevin McHale embraced near the baseline, faces smeared with sweat and triumph. They weren't just champions; they were the standard by which all greatness would be measured.

Reader's Guide

The Celtics won the first two games at the Boston Garden, where they had gone 40–1 during the regular season. The Rockets defeated the Celtics 106–104 in game three. The Celtics won game four 106–103. Game five featured a brawl when Ralph Sampson was ejected after fighting Jerry Sichting; the Rockets won that game. The Celtics closed out the series with a 114–97 victory in game six. Larry Bird averaged 24 points, 9.7 rebounds, 9.7 assists, and 2.7 steals per game for the series.

Did You Know?

• This series marked the first time the 'NBA Finals' branding was officially used, dropping the 'NBA World Championship Series' branding.
• Until the 2012 series, this was the last time the NBA Finals had started before June.
• It was the last NBA Finals series to schedule a game on a Monday until 1999 and the last NBA Finals game to be played on Memorial Day.
• Until the 2018 series, it was the last to conclude before June 10.
• CBS Sports used Dick Stockton and Tom Heinsohn as the play-by-play man and color commentator respectively.