Boston Celtics vs Los Angeles Lakers
Celtics lead Lakers 18–17 in all-time NBA championships as of 2024.
The Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers are two of the most storied franchises in NBA history. As of the end of the 2023–24 season, the Celtics have won 18 championships, and the Lakers have won 17, for a combined total of 35 NBA titles.
- Total Finals Meetings
- 12
- Celtics Championships vs Lakers
- 9
- Lakers Championships vs Celtics
- 5
- Defining Era
- 1960s-1980s
- Primary Rivalry Dynamic
- East Coast Tradition vs. West Coast Showtime
Lore & Background
The Celtics and Lakers have met in the NBA Finals multiple times. Article, the Celtics defeated the Dallas Mavericks in five games during the 2024 NBA Finals, winning their 18th championship and breaking a tie with the Lakers for the most championships in NBA history.
In Their Own Story
Larry Bird stood at the free-throw line, wiping sweat from his brow as he prepared to execute a play that would define Game 7. Across the court, Magic Johnson moved with rhythmic ease, his grin masking the pressure of the moment. It was a war of ideologies: Boston's defensive discipline against LA's offensive speed. When the final buzzer sounded and green confetti rained down on the parquet floor, the silence from the Lakers bench signaled another chapter in a saga written in sweat, rivalry, and history.
Reader's Guide
It is unclear from the source what the exact Celtics vs. Lakers Finals record is, other than that the Celtics have 18 championships and the Lakers have 17.
Did You Know?
- The Celtics won their 18th championship in 2024, breaking a tie with the Lakers for the most NBA titles.
- The Celtics' 2024 championship was their first since 2008.
- The Celtics had the best regular-season record (64–18) in the NBA in 2023–24 and won the title, the first team to do so since the 2017 Golden State Warriors.
More in Great Rivalries & Feuds
Elsewhere in the Boston Celtics universe
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