1983–84 Boston Celtics season


The 1983–84 Boston Celtics were champions of the National Basketball Association led by regular season and finals MVP Larry Bird.
In the playoffs, the Celtics defeated the Washington Bullets in the First Round in three games, defeated the New York Knicks in the Semifinals in seven games, and defeated the Milwaukee Bucks in the Conference Finals in five games, advancing to the NBA Finals. In the Finals, the Celtics faced their long time rival, the Los Angeles Lakers, the first time the two teams faced off against each other since 1969 in which the Celtics won 4–3, and the first time the two teams met in the Finals in the 1980s. The Celtics would go on to defeat the Lakers in seven games, winning their fifteenth NBA championship, and extending their NBA Finals victories over the Lakers to 8.

Offseason

NBA Draft

Roster

Regular season

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Game log

Regular season

Playoffs

Player stats

Note: GP= Games played; REB= Rebounds; AST= Assists; STL = Steals; BLK = Blocks; PTS = Points; AVG = Scoring Average
PlayerGPREBASTSTLBLKPTSAVG
Larry Bird7979652014469190824.2
Robert Parish8085713955116152019.0
Kevin McHale8261010423126151118.4
Dennis Johnson802803389357105313.2
Cedric Maxwell80461205632495511.9
Gerald Henderson781473001171490811.6
Danny Ainge711161624143845.4
Scott Wedman68139672773274.8
Quinn Buckner791372148433244.1
M.L. Carr6075491741853.1
Greg Kite3562715651.9
Carlos Clark31171781541.7

Playoffs

Eastern Conference First Round

Boston Celtics vs. Washington Bullets: Celtics win series 3-1
Last Playoff Meeting: 1982 Eastern Conference Semifinals
Boston defeats the Washington Bullets three games to one in a best of five series.

Eastern Conference Semifinals

Boston Celtics vs. New York Knicks: Celtics win series 4-3
Last Playoff Meeting: 1974 Eastern Conference Finals
Boston defeats the New York Knicks four games to three in a best of seven series.

Eastern Conference Finals

Boston Celtics vs. Milwaukee Bucks: Celtics win series 4-1
Last Playoff Meeting: 1983 Eastern Conference Semifinals
Boston defeats the Milwaukee Bucks four games to one in a best of seven series.

NBA Finals

Boston Celtics vs. Los Angeles Lakers: Celtics win series 4-3
Last Playoff Meeting: 1969 NBA Finals

Game One

The Lakers opened the series with a 115-109 victory at Boston Garden.

Game Two

In Game 2, the Lakers led 113-111 with 18 seconds left when Gerald Henderson stole a James Worthy pass to score a game tying layup and the Celtics eventually prevailed in overtime 124-121.

Game Three

In Game 3, the Lakers raced to an easy 137-104 victory as Magic Johnson dished out 21 assists. After the game, Larry Bird said his team played like "sissies" in an attempt to light a fire under his teammates.

Game Four

In Game 4, the Lakers had a five-point lead with less than a minute to play, but made several execution errors as the Celtics tied the game and then came away with a 129-125 victory in overtime. The game was also marked by Celtic forward Kevin McHale's takedown of Laker forward Kurt Rambis on a breakaway layup which triggered the physical aspect of the rivalry. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar would go after Larry Bird later on in the third quarter, and 1981 Finals MVP Cedric Maxwell further antagonized the Lakers by following a missed James Worthy free throw by crossing the lane with his hands around his own neck, symbolizing that Worthy was "choking" under pressure. Also, Bird pushed Michael Cooper to the baseline following the inbound play during the second quarter.

Game Five

In Game 5, the Celtics took a 3-2 series lead as Larry Bird scored 34 points. The game was known as the "Heat Game", as it was played under 97-degree heat, and without any air conditioning, at Boston Garden. The Celtics did not warm up with their sweat pants on because of extreme heat, and oxygen tanks were provided to give air to exhausted players.

Game Six

In Game 6, the Lakers evened the series with a 119-108 victory. In the game the Lakers answered the Celtics' rough tactics when Laker forward James Worthy shoved Cedric Maxwell into a basket support. After the game a Laker fan threw a beer at Celtics guard M.L. Carr as he left the floor, causing him to label the series "all-out-war."

Game Seven

In Game 7, the heat that was an issue in Game 5 was not so bad. The Celtics were led by Cedric Maxwell who had 24 points, eight rebounds and eight assists as they came away with a 111-102 victory. In the game the Lakers rallied from a 14-point-deficit to three with one minute remaining when Cedric Maxwell knocked the ball away from Magic Johnson. Dennis Johnson responded by sinking two free throws to seal the victory. Larry Bird was named MVP of the series.
The series was the eighth time in NBA history that the Celtics and Lakers met in the NBA finals, with Boston winning each time.

Award winners