1984 NBA Championship
The peak of the 1980s Celtics-Lakers rivalry.
The 1984 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the NBA's 1983–84 season. The Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics defeated the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers in seven games to win their fifteenth NBA championship. Celtics forward Larry Bird averaged 27 points and 14 rebounds a game during the series, earning the NBA Finals MVP.
- Championship Count
- 11th in franchise history
- Finals Opponent
- Los Angeles Lakers
- Series Result
- Won 4-3
- Head Coach
- Red Auerbach (in his first year as head coach)
- Key Leader
- Larry Bird (Finals MVP)
- Season Record
- 62-20
Lore & Background
This series was a rematch of the Lakers and Celtics after their rivalry was revived in 1979 with the Magic Johnson–Larry Bird pair entering the league. After alternating wins with the Lakers, the Celtics won Game 7 and the series 111–102. This was the last NBA Finals to use the 2–2–1–1–1 format until 2014. The following year, the format was changed to 2–3–2 after Celtics president Red Auerbach complained to NBA Commissioner David Stern about constant travel. The series was the eighth time the Celtics and Lakers met in the NBA finals, with Boston winning each of the previous seven.
In Their Own Story
The air inside the Forum was thick with tension, smelling of popcorn and sweat under the bright arena lights. Larry Bird stood at the free-throw line, the roar of the hostile crowd fading into a dull hum as he focused on the rim. He dribbled once, twice, released the ball with his signature high arc, and watched it swish through the net. The Boston bench erupted, but Bird simply nodded, knowing that one more stop would bring the banner home to the Garden.
Reader's Guide
The Celtics won 62 games in the regular season, led by Bird (his first MVP award), complemented by Cedric Maxwell, Kevin McHale, Robert Parish, Gerald Henderson, and Danny Ainge. Their most crucial addition was Dennis Johnson. In the playoffs, they defeated the Washington Bullets in four, the New York Knicks in seven, and the Milwaukee Bucks in five. The Lakers finished with the best record in the Western Conference (54–28), powered by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Magic Johnson. They defeated the Kansas City Kings in three, the Dallas Mavericks in five, and the Phoenix Suns in six. The Lakers suffered a key injury when Jamaal Wilkes was ruled out of the finals.
Did You Know?
- Game 4 of the 1984 Finals marked the last Finals game to go into overtime until Game 2 of the 1990 NBA Finals.
- In Game 5, played under 97 °F heat without air conditioning at Boston Garden, referee Hugh Evans became dehydrated and fainted in the first half.
- Magic Johnson set an NBA Finals record with 21 assists in Game 3.
- This was the Celtics' first championship of the 1980s.
More in Championships & Records
Elsewhere in the Boston Celtics universe
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