1985–86 Boston Celtics season

NBA basketball team season (won NBA championship) August 2019 August 2019 Boston Celtics 1986 yes yes yes 67 15 Atlantic 1 1 K. C. Jones Jan Volk Boston GardenHartford Civic Center Don GastonAlan N. CohenPaul Dupee WLVI(Gil Santos, Bob Cousy)SportsChannel New England(Mike Gorman, Tom Heinsohn) WRKO(Johnny Most, Glenn Ordway) NBA champions(Defeated Rockets 4–2) BOS The 1985–86 Boston Celtics season was the 40th season of the Boston Celtics in the National Basketball Association (NBA). They finished with the best record in the league at 67–15, including a 40–1 record at home (37–1 at the Boston Garden, 3–0 at the Hartford Civic Center). Those 40 home wins set an NBA record which would only be matched by the San Antonio Spurs in 2016. Arguably considered the best Celtics team ever, and widely regarded among the greatest teams in NBA history, their 67 total wins were one win shy of tying their franchise record of 68 wins set in 1973, and tied for fifth all-time. Larry Bird won his third consecutive MVP award and Bill Walton won the Sixth Man of the Year Award. The team was anchored by the "Big Three" frontcourt of Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish, which is frequently ranked among the best frontcourts in NBA history. In the playoffs, the Celtics swept the Chicago Bulls in three games in the First Round, then defeated the Atlanta Hawks in five games in the Semi-finals, before sweeping the Milwaukee Bucks in four games in the Conference Finals to reach the NBA Finals for a third consecutive season. In the NBA Finals, the Celtics faced off against the Houston Rockets in a rematch of the 1981 NBA Finals, which the Celtics won in six games, winning every home game in the playoffs. The Celtics would go on to win their 16th championship and the last for 22 years, defeating the Houston Rockets in six games in the NBA Finals, and had won 82 combined regular season and playoff games, a record that stood until the Chicago Bulls racked up 87 combined wins en route to a title in 1996 (with the Golden State Warriors later breaking that record in 2016 with 88 combined wins, including a 73–9 regular season record, although they infamously lost in the finals that season after leading the series 3–1). HoopsHype later ranked this squad as the team with the 17th easiest path to the NBA Finals in 2024 due to the 30–52 record of their first round opponent, the Chicago Bulls.Urbina Frank Ranking the easiest paths to an NBA title ever HoopsHype 2024-06-17 https://hoopshype.com/lists/ranking-the-easiest-paths-to-an-nba-title-ever-championship/ 2025-03-19 NBA draft The 1985 NBA draft took place on June 18, 1985. It was also the first NBA Draft of the "Lottery" era. The lottery was put into place so teams could not intentionally lose games to receive the number one pick. Round Pick Player Position Nationality School/Club team 1 20 Sam Vincent Guard United States Michigan State 3 70 Andre Battle Guard United States Loyola (IL) 4 93 Cliff Webber Forward United States Liberty Baptist 5 116 Albert Butts Forward United States La Salle 6 139 Ralph Lewis Guard United States La Salle 7 162 Chris Remly United States Rutgers Season Synopsis The Celtics were coming from a 6-game NBA Finals series against their arch-rival the Los Angeles Lakers. They ended with a record 63-19 during the regular season, a league-best record, earning home court advantage throughout the playoffs. October/November They started their 1985–86 season campaign with a 109-113 OT loss to the New Jersey Nets, despite a near quadruple-double performance from Larry Bird, who recorded 21 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists and 8 steals for the Celtics.https://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/198510250NJN.html Boston Celtics at New Jersey Nets Box Score, October 25, 1985 Basketball-Reference.com August 5, 2019 The next day, Kevin McHale's 26 points and 15 rebounds led the Celtics towards a 105–100 road win over the Cavaliers.https://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/198510260CLE.html Boston Celtics at Cleveland Cavaliers Box Score, October 26, 1985 Basketball-Reference.com August 5, 2019 Four days later, the Celtics defeated the visiting Bucks, 117–106, with Bird, McHale, Parish and Johnson, all scoring at least 20 points.https://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/198510300BOS.html Milwaukee Bucks at Boston Celtics Box Score, October 30, 1985 Basketball-Reference.com August 5, 2019 They ended the month of October with a 2–1 record, and were 15-2 at the end of November. Regular season Under head coach K. C. Jones, the 1985–86 Boston Celtics finished the regular season with a record of 67–15. This team is generally considered to be the best of Larry Bird's career. In addition to longtime Celtics Kevin McHale and Robert Parish, the franchise was joined on the front line by former NBA MVP Bill Walton. Despite a career plagued by a series of serious injuries to his knees, ankles and feet, Walton would win the NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award. Walton had missed essentially the past two seasons and the Los Angeles Clippers put him on the trade bloc as his contract ran out. The Los Angeles Lakers and the Celtics were both interested, but the Lakers wanted Walton to be cleared by their team doctor before making any trade. The Celtics, on the other hand, were willing to trade former Finals MVP Cedric Maxwell for Walton-based solely on his word that he felt he was healthy enough to play. Walton appeared in a career high 80 games. The backcourt was led by the MVP of the 1979 NBA Finals, defensive stopper Dennis Johnson, and former Toronto Blue Jays baseball player, shooting guard Danny Ainge. Off the bench, the Celtics featured former All-Star Scott Wedman and recent acquisition (from the Indiana Pacers) Jerry Sichting. Season standings BOS BOS Game log Boston Celtics 1986 #006400 #FFFFFF Total: 67–15 (Home: 40–1; Road: 27–14) Boston Celtics October yes #FFFFFF #006400 1 0 1 1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 1 | October 25, 1985 | @ New Jersey | L 109–113 (OT) | Bird (21) | Bird (12) | Bird (10) | Brendan Byrne Arena13,095 | 0–1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 2 | October 26, 1985 | @ Cleveland | W 105–100 | McHale (21) | McHale (15) | Johnson (5) | Richfield Coliseum20,900 | 1–1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 3 | October 30, 19857:30p.m. EST | Milwaukee | W 117–106 | McHale (25) | Parish (13) | Ainge,Bird (5) | Boston Garden14,890 | 2–1 Boston Celtics November #FFFFFF #006400 8 0 5 1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 4 | November 1, 1985 | Atlanta | W 109–105 | Bird (25) | McHale (10) | Johnson (9) | Boston Garden14,890 | 3–1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 5 | November 2, 1985 | @ Washington | W 88–73 | Ainge (20) | Parish (10) | Bird (8) | Capital Centre17,488 | 4–1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 6 | November 8, 1985 | Phoenix | W 125–101 | Parish (25) | Parish (10) | Bird (10) | Boston Garden14,890 | 5–1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 7 | November 9, 1985 | @ Detroit | W 124–105 | Bird (29) | McHale (11) | Johnson (7) | Pontiac Silverdome25,148 | 6–1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 8 | November 13, 1985 | Indiana | W 118–114 | Johnson (30) | Bird (15) | Bird (7) | Boston Garden14,890 | 7–1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 9 | November 15, 1985 | Washington | W 118–114 | Ainge (24) | Bird (11) | Ainge (9) | Boston Garden14,890 | 8–1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 10 | November 16, 1985 | @ Indiana | L 109–111 | Bird (33) | Parish (10) | Ainge (7) | Market Square Arena16,904 | 8–2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 11 | November 20, 1985 | Utah | W 115–106 (OT) | Bird (27) | Parish (17) | Ainge (7) | Boston Garden14,890 | 9–2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 12 | November 22, 1985 | Philadelphia | W 110–103 | McHale (32) | Parish (12) | Bird (6) | Boston Garden14,890 | 10–2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 13 | November 23, 1985 | @ New York | W 113–104 | Parish (27) | Parish (12) | Bird (10) | Madison Square Garden19,591 | 11–2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 14 | November 26, 1985 | @ Philadelphia | W 98–91 | Parish (22) | McHale (13) | Bird (11) | The Spectrum17,921 | 12–2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 15 | November 27, 1985 | Detroit | W 132–124 | Bird (47) | Bird (12) | Ainge,Johnson (5) | Boston Garden14,890 | 13–2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 16 | November 29, 1985 | New York | W 94–88 | Bird (31) | Bird (15) | Johnson (7) | Boston Garden14,890 | 14–2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 17 | November 30, 1985 | @ Atlanta | W 102–97 | Bird (28) | McHale (8) | Johnson (8) | The Omni13,101 | 15–2 Boston Celtics December #FFFFFF #006400 4 1 4 4 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 18 | December 3, 19858:30p.m. EST | @ Milwaukee | W 112–109 | McHale (29) | McHale (10) | Ainge (6) | MECCA Arena11,052 | 16–2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 19 | December 4, 1985 | @ New Jersey | W 130–111 | Johnson (23) | Walton (13) | Ainge,Bird,McHale (5) | Brendan Byrne Arena15,169 | 17–2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 20 | December 6, 1985 | Portland | L 103–121 | Bird (20) | Bird (11) | Ainge (9) | Boston Garden14,890 | 17–3 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 21 | December 10, 1985 | Atlanta(at Hartford, Connecticut) | W 114–110 | McHale,Parish (24) | Parish (10) | Johnson (9) | Hartford Civic Center14,493 | 18–3 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 22 | December 11, 1985 | Sacramento | W 118–101 | Bird (24) | Bird (7) | Ainge,Bird (5) | Boston Garden14,890 | 19–3 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 23 | December 14, 1985 | @ Cleveland | L 99–109 | Bird (31) | McHale (12) | Ainge (9) | Richfield Coliseum15,349 | 19–4 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 24 | December 15, 1985 | Chicago | W 109–104 | Bird (34) | Parish (15) | Ainge (9) | Boston Garden14,890 | 20–4 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 25 | December 17, 1985 | @ Chicago | L 108–116 | Johnson (25) | Parish (15) | Johnson (8) | Chicago Stadium13,786 | 20–5 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 26 | December 18, 1985 | Dallas | W 137–117 | Bird (35) | McHale (10) | Ainge (13) | Boston Garden14,890 | 21–5 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 27 | December 21, 1985 | @ Philadelphia | L 102–108 | McHale (34) | McHale (10) | Ainge (9) | The Spectrum17,941 | 21–6 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 28 | December 25, 1985 | @ New York | L 104–113 (2OT) | McHale (29) | Parish (18) | Ainge (8) | Madison Square Garden17,480 | 21–7 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 29 | December 28, 1985 | @ Utah | W 110–108 | Bird,McHale (24) | Parish (10) | Bird (8) | Salt Palace12,702 | 22–7 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 30 | December 30, 1985 | @ L.A. Clippers | W 125–103 | McHale (22) | McHale (18) | Bird (8) | Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena14,977 | 23–7 Boston Celtics January #FFFFFF #006400 7 0 5 1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 31 | January 2, 1986 | @ Indiana | W 122–104 | Johnson (29) | Bird (13) | Bird (8) | Market Square Arena14,974 | 24–7 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 32 | January 3, 1986 | New Jersey | W 129–117 | Bird (29) | Bird (10) | Johnson (8) | Boston Garden14,890 | 25–7 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 33 | January 7, 1986 | @ Detroit | L 109–113 | McHale (29) | Bird (12) | Bird (8) | Pontiac Silverdome17,421 | 25–8 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 34 | January 8, 1986 | Cleveland | W 126–95 | Bird (25) | McHale (13) | Bird (7) | Boston Garden14,890 | 26–8 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 35 | January 10, 1986 | Atlanta | W 115–108 | Bird (29) | Parish (15) | Johnson (8) | Boston Garden14,890 | 27–8 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 36 | January 15, 1986 | Denver | W 123–100 | McHale (33) | Bird (14) | Bird (9) | Boston Garden14,890 | 28–8 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 37 | January 17, 1986 | @ Indiana | W 123–105 | McHale (28) | Bird (9) | Bird (8) | Market Square Arena16,904 | 29–8 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 38 | January 18, 1986 | @ Atlanta | W 125–122 (OT) | Bird (41) | McHale (12) | Ainge (12) | The Omni16,522 | 30–8 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 39 | January 22, 19868:00p.m. EST | L.A. Lakers | W 110–95 | Johnson (22) | Bird (12) | Ainge (8) | Boston Garden14,890 | 31–8 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 40 | January 24, 1986 | Golden State | W 135–114 | Bird (25) | Wedman (13) | Johnson (7) | Boston Garden14,890 | 32–8 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 41 | January 26, 1986 | Philadelphia | W 105–103 | Bird (28) | Bird (14) | Bird (6) | Boston Garden14,890 | 33–8 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 42 | January 30, 1986 | @ Chicago | W 101–91 | Bird (26) | Parish (16) | Johnson (8) | Chicago Stadium15,207 | 34–8 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 43 | January 31, 1986 | @ Washington | W 97–88 | Wedman (24) | Parish (14) | Ainge (9) | Capital Centre19,123 | 35–8 Boston Celtics February #FFFFFF #006400 5 0 6 3 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 44 | February 2, 1986 | Seattle | W 114–101 | Johnson (24) | Bird (11) | Johnson (7) | Boston Garden14,890 | 36–8 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 45 | February 4, 19868:30p.m. EST | @ Milwaukee | W 112–93 | Bird (24) | Bird (9) | Johnson (8) | MECCA Arena11,052 | 37–8 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 46 | February 5, 1986 | Washington | W 103–88 | Bird (26) | Walton (17) | Bird,Johnson (6) | Boston Garden14,890 | 38–8 |- align="center" |colspan="9" bgcolor="#bbcaff"|All-Star Break |- style="background:#cfc;" |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 47 | February 11, 1986 | @ Sacramento | L 100–105 | Bird (29) | Parish (15) | Johnson (5) | ARCO Arena10,333 | 38–9 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 48 | February 13, 1986 | @ Seattle | W 107–98 | Bird (31) | Bird (15) | Bird (11) | Seattle Center Coliseum14,230 | 39–9 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 49 | February 14, 1986 | @ Portland | W 120–119 (OT) | Bird (47) | Bird (14) | Ainge (12) | Memorial Coliseum12,666 | 40–9 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 50 | February 16, 19863:30p.m. EST | @ L.A. Lakers | W 105–99 | Johnson (23) | Bird (18) | Bird (7) | The Forum17,505 | 41–9 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 51 | February 17, 1986 | @ Phoenix | L 101–108 | Johnson (24) | Parish (11) | Bird,Carlisle,Johnson (3) | Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum14,519 | 41–10 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 52 | February 19, 1986 | @ Golden State | W 115–100 | Bird (36) | Parish (13) | Bird (11) | Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena15,011 | 42–10 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 53 | February 20, 1986 | @ Denver | L 100–102 | Bird (27) | Bird (16) | Ainge (8) | McNichols Sports Arena17,022 | 42–11 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 54 | February 23, 1986 | Indiana(at Hartford, Connecticut) | W 113–98 | Bird (30) | Parish (15) | Bird (12) | Hartford Civic Center15,124 | 43–11 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 55 | February 25, 1986 | @ New York | W 91–74 | Bird (24) | Bird (18) | Bird (13) | Madison Square Garden18,329 | 44–11 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 56 | February 26, 1986 | San Antonio | W 120–100 | Parish (27) | Parish (10) | Bird (9) | Boston Garden14,890 | 45–11 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 57 | February 28, 1986 | L.A. Clippers | W 124–108 | Parish (26) | Bird (13) | Bird (12) | Boston Garden14,890 | 46–11 Boston Celtics March #FFFFFF #006400 11 0 4 2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 58 | March 2, 1986 | Detroit | W 129–109 | Bird (35) | Bird (9) | Johnson (8) | Boston Garden14,890 | 47–11 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 59 | March 4, 1986 | @ Chicago | W 106–94 | McHale (23) | Parish (11) | Johnson (8) | Chicago Stadium14,172 | 48–11 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 60 | March 5, 1986 | Chicago | W 108–97 | Bird (26) | Parish (15) | Ainge (10) | Boston Garden14,890 | 49–11 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 61 | March 7, 1986 | New York | W 115–108 | McHale (20) | Walton (12) | Ainge,Bird (8) | Boston Garden14,890 | 50–11 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 62 | March 8, 1986 | @ Washington | L 108–110 (OT) | Bird (24) | Parish (25) | Bird (8) | Capital Centre19,123 | 50–12 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 63 | March 10, 1986 | @ Dallas | L 115–116 | Bird (50) | Parish (16) | Johnson (6) | Reunion Arena17,007 | 50–13 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 64 | March 11, 19868:30p.m. EST | @ Houston | W 116–104 | Bird (31) | Walton (16) | Bird (10) | The Summit16,016 | 51–13 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 65 | March 13, 1986 | @ San Antonio | W 135–119 | Bird (33) | Bird (11) | Johnson (7) | HemisFair Arena14,180 | 52–13 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 66 | March 14, 1986 | @ Atlanta | W 121–114 | Bird (26) | McHale (12) | Johnson (9) | The Omni16,522 | 53–13 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 67 | March 16, 1986 | Philadelphia | W 118–101 | Bird (36) | Bird (14) | Johnson (7) | Boston Garden14,890 | 54–13 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 68 | March 18, 1986 | Cleveland(at Hartford, Connecticut) | W 126–96 | Bird (43) | Parish (12) | Johnson (11) | Hartford Civic Center15,134 | 55–13 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 69 | March 19, 1986 | Indiana | W 127–108 | Parish (28) | Parish (17) | Johnson (8) | Boston Garden14,890 | 56–13 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 70 | March 21, 1986 | Chicago | W 126–105 | Bird (32) | Parish (14) | Johnson (9) | Boston Garden14,890 | 57–13 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 71 | March 24, 19868:00p.m. EST | Houston | W 114–107 | Bird (36) | Johnson,McHale,Parish (8) | Johnson (12) | Boston Garden14,890 | 58–13 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 72 | March 26, 19867:30p.m. EST | Milwaukee | W 121–115 | Bird (35) | Bird (12) | Bird,Johnson (6) | Boston Garden14,890 | 59–13 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 73 | March 28, 1986 | Washington | W 116–97 | Bird (27) | Bird,Walton (12) | Johnson (9) | Boston Garden14,890 | 60–13 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 74 | March 30, 1986 | New Jersey | W 122–117 | Bird (40) | Parish (14) | Johnson (10) | Boston Garden14,890 | 61–13 Boston Celtics April #FFFFFF #006400 4 0 2 2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 75 | April 1, 1986 | @ Cleveland | W 123–105 | Johnson (21) | Walton (11) | Johnson (7) | Richfield Coliseum17,495 | 62–13 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 76 | April 2, 1986 | Detroit | W 122–106 | Parish (30) | Parish (18) | Bird (13) | Boston Garden14,890 | 63–13 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 77 | April 4, 1986 | New York | W 119–98 | McHale (25) | McHale (11) | Bird (8) | Boston Garden14,890 | 64–13 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 78 | April 6, 1986 | @ Philadelphia | L 94–95 | Johnson (22) | Parish (11) | Bird (10) | The Spectrum17,941 | 64–14 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 79 | April 8, 19868:30p.m. EST | @ Milwaukee | W 126–114 | Walton (22) | Bird (14) | Bird (7) | MECCA Arena11,052 | 65–14 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 80 | April 9, 1986 | @ New Jersey | L 98–108 | McHale (18) | Bird (10) | McHale (8) | Brendan Byrne Arena18,092 | 65–15 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 81 | April 11, 1986 | Cleveland | W 117–104 | McHale (30) | Parish (9) | Bird (8) | Boston Garden 14,890 | 66–15 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 82 | April 13, 1986 | New Jersey | W 135–107 | Bird (26) | Parish (13) | Ainge,Johnson (4) | Boston Garden 14,890 | 67–15 BOS 1986 Player stats Note: GP= Games played; REB= Rebounds; AST= Assists; STL = Steals; BLK = Blocks; PTS = Points; AVG = Average Player GP REB AST STL BLK PTS AVG Larry Bird 82 805 557 166 51 2115 25.8 Kevin McHale 68 551 181 29 134 1448 21.3 Robert Parish 81 770 145 65 116 1305 16.1 Dennis Johnson 78 268 456 110 35 1213 15.6 Danny Ainge 80 235 405 94 7 855 10.7 Scott Wedman 79 192 82 38 22 634 8.0 Bill Walton 80 544 165 38 106 606 7.6 Jerry Sichting 82 104 188 50 0 537 6.5 David Thirdkill 49 70 15 11 3 163 3.3 Sam Vincent 57 48 69 17 4 184 3.2 Sly Williams 6 15 2 1 1 17 2.8 Rick Carlisle 77 77 104 19 4 199 2.6 Greg Kite 64 128 17 3 28 83 1.3 Playoffs Boston Celtics 1986 yes #006400 #FFFFFF Boston Celtics #008040 white Eastern Conference First Round yes yes no 2 0 1 0 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 1 | April 17, 1986 | Chicago | W 123–104 | Bird (30) | McHale,Parish (10) | Bird (8) | Boston Garden14,890 | 1–0 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 2 | April 20, 1986 | Chicago | W 135–131 (2OT) | Bird (36) | McHale,Walton (15) | Bird,Johnson (8) | Boston Garden14,890 | 2–0 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 3 | April 22, 1986 | @ Chicago | W 122–104 | McHale (31) | Walton (9) | Bird (8) | Chicago Stadium18,968 | 3–0 |- Boston Celtics #008040 white Eastern Conference Semifinals yes no 3 0 1 1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 1 | April 27, 19861:00p.m. EDT | Atlanta | W 103–91 | McHale (24) | Bird (12) | Johnson (14) | Boston Garden14,890 | 1–0 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 2 | April 29, 19868:30p.m. EDT | Atlanta | W 119–108 | Bird (36) | McHale (9) | Johnson (9) | Boston Garden14,890 | 2–0 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 3 | May 2, 19867:30p.m. EDT | @ Atlanta | W 111–107 | Bird (28) | Parish (14) | Bird (12) | The Omni12,357 | 3–0 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 4 | May 4, 19861:00p.m. EDT | @ Atlanta | L 94–106 | McHale (26) | McHale (12) | Bird (5) | The Omni12,357 | 3–1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 5 | May 6, 19867:30p.m. EDT | Atlanta | W 132–99 | Bird (36) | Parish (13) | Johnson (8) | Boston Garden14,890 | 4–1 |- Boston Celtics #008040 white Eastern Conference Finals yes no 2 0 2 0 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 1 | May 13, 19868:00p.m. EDT | Milwaukee | W 128–96 | Bird (26) | Ainge (10) | Sichting (8) | Boston Garden14,890 | 1–0 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 2 | May 15, 19868:00p.m. EDT | Milwaukee | W 122–111 | Bird (26) | Parish (9) | Bird (9) | Boston Garden14,890 | 2–0 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 3 | May 17, 19862:00p.m. EDT | @ Milwaukee | W 111–107 | McHale (29) | Bird (16) | Bird (13) | MECCA Arena11,052 | 3–0 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 4 | May 18, 19863:30p.m. EDT | @ Milwaukee | W 111–98 | Bird (30) | McHale (11) | Ainge,Bird (5) | MECCA Arena11,052 | 4–0 |- Boston Celtics #008040 white NBA Finals yes no 3 0 1 2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 1 | May 26, 19863:00p.m. EDT | Houston | W 112–100 | Parish (23) | Johnson (11) | Bird (13) | Boston Garden14,890 | 1–0 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 2 | May 29, 19869:00p.m. EDT | Houston | W 117–95 | Bird (31) | Bird (8) | Bird (7) | Boston Garden14,890 | 2–0 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 3 | June 1, 19863:30p.m. EDT | @ Houston | L 104–106 | McHale (28) | Bird (15) | Bird (11) | The Summit16,016 | 2–1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 4 | June 3, 19869:00p.m. EDT | @ Houston | W 106–103 | Parish (22) | Parish (15) | Bird (10) | The Summit16,016 | 3–1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 5 | June 5, 19869:00p.m. EDT | @ Houston | L 96–111 | McHale (33) | McHale (8) | Ainge (5) | The Summit16,016 | 3–2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 6 | June 8, 19861:00p.m. EDT | Houston | W 114–97 | Bird (29) | Bird (11) | Bird (12) | Boston Garden14,890 | 4–2 |- BOS yes 1986 Following the conclusion of the 1986 NBA Finals, a video documentary of the 1986 NBA season, known as Sweet Sixteen, was released.dlhTJ2L4W0w "Sweet Sixteen" documentary David Perry was the narrator after Dick Stockton had narrated the last three NBA season documentaries. Roster Boston Celtics 1985–86 44 Danny Ainge SG 6 5 175 Brigham Young University 1959-03-17 33 Larry Bird SF 6 9 220 Indiana State University 1956-12-07 34 Rick Carlisle SG 6 5 210 University of Virginia 1959-10-27 3 Dennis Johnson PG 6 4 185 Pepperdine University 1954-09-18 50 Greg Kite C 6 11 250 Brigham Young University 1961-08-05 32 Kevin McHale basketball PF 6 10 210 University of Minnesota 1957-12-19 00 Robert Parish C 7 1 230 Centenary College of Louisiana 1953-08-30 12 Jerry Sichting PG 6 1 168 Purdue University 1956-11-29 45 David Thirdkill SF 6 7 195 Bradley University 1960-04-12 11 Sam Vincent Sam_Vincent_(basketball) PG 6 2 185 Michigan State University 1963-05-18 5 Bill Walton C 6 11 235 University of California, Los Angeles 1952-11-05 8 Scott Wedman SF 6 7 215 University of Colorado 1952-07-29 35 Sly Williams SG 6 7 210 University of Rhode Island 1958-01-26 K. C. Jones Ed Badger Chris Ford Jimmy Rodgers https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/BOS/1986.html Award winners Larry Bird, Associated Press Athlete of the Year Larry Bird, NBA Most Valuable Player Award Larry Bird, NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award Larry Bird, All-NBA First Team Kevin McHale, All-NBA Defensive First Team Dennis Johnson, All-NBA Defensive Second Team Bill Walton, NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award Larry Bird, NBA 3-Point Shootout champion Larry Bird, three-point field goal leader References Celtics on Database Basketball Celtics on Basketball Reference dlhTJ2L4W0w NBA documentary about the 1985–86 Boston Celtics Category:Boston Celtics seasons Category:NBA championship seasons Boston Celtics Category:Eastern Conference (NBA) championship seasons Boston Celtics Boston Celtics Celtics Celtics