The 1984 NBA Finals pitted the Boston Celtics against the Los Angeles Lakers. Many consider the Celtics and Lakers to be the greatest rivalry in sports. It’s not because of the franchises themselves with their storied histories, their combined 33 NBA championships, and their numerous Hall of Famers. One of the main reasons is because it was a battle of race and cultures. With Los Angeles, it was Hollywood, flashy, and embraced by the African-American community. With Boston, it was Blue-collar, gritty, and predominantly caucasian. This became even more prevalent during the player rivalry between Larry Bird and Magic Johnson.

1984 NBA Finals: A League Reborn

The Series Beginning

The Los Angeles Lakers didn’t have any trouble in game one with Kareem Abdul-Jabber leading the way with 32 points and 8 rebounds. In game two, the series saw its first sign of drama and emotion. With 18 seconds left in regulation, Celtics shooting guard Gerald Henderson stole the ball from James Worthy and went to score the game-tying layup. The Boston Celtics would go on to win game two in overtime off of a Robert Parish steal from Bob McAdoo

The Flashes and Fisticuffs at the Forum

In game three, The Los Angeles Lakers took home-court advantage. Their fast pace, high potent offense dominated the Boston Celtics, beating them by 34 points. That margin of victory is the largest against the Celtics in Finals history. In game four, it was about to turn into the same result as game three, but in the third quarter, Kurt Rambis drove in for a layup until he was clotheslined by Kevin McHale. This triggered a brawl, showing how tough the Boston Celtics were. This resulted in a Boston win in overtime. After the game, Celtics started calling Magic Johnson the nickname ‘Tragic Johnson’ after a series of mistakes at the end of game four.

The Heat of the Boston Garden

In game five, the temperature in the Boston Garden reached 97 degrees Fahrenheit with no air conditioning. The intense heat gave it the nickname “The Heat Game”, and it had an obvious effect. During the game, Kareem Abdul-Jabber started to get fatigued due to the extreme heat, and the Celtics took advantage. The Celtics took game five behind Larry Bird’s 34 points and 17 rebounds, giving the Celtics their first lead in the series.

The Conclusion

In game six, the Lakers started to retaliate against the Celtics’ rough tactics. They had an answer for it and went on to win game six. With game seven heading back to the Boston Garden, the heat wasn’t too much of a factor. Even without fatigue from the heat, Boston would maintain control for almost the entire game. They went on to win the 1984 NBA Finals with Bird named MVP. The series boasted high ratings on television, and the ratings continued to grow in the years after because of the successful careers of Magic and Bird. Their rivalry became the cornerstone for the growth and diversity of the NBA fans. Not only was the Boston Celtics, Los Angeles Lakers rivalry and the rivalry of Bird and Magic renewed, but the NBA grew as a result of it.

Heath Sutphin

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