1985-86 Boston Celtics @ Los Angeles Lakers (1st Half)

[bootiack]

Love worthy, he got arrested for hiring whore, then came ot a game late and scored liek 30

[bootiack]

lakers home court is a bitch, typically twice the free throws of other team, major factor in 5 titles aside from len bias cokin himself to death

[bootiack]

notice how ainge n dj make perimitere shots nonstop

[bootiack]

players today not better athletes at all, worthy dominique olajuwon michael thompson barkey jordan would school dummies of today not to mention bird

[intlkeyboards]

Back when basketball players were men instead of metrosexuals.

[ralphabetsoup]

The '83 Sixers, '85 Lakers, and '86 Celtics championship teams could have beat anybody, any era, imo. I've never seen better teams than those.

[CLewey44]

When you suck like Kite did, the only thing you can be is the hustle/enforcer type.

[CLewey44]

I like 7:03, Bird shooting around. Funny...

[SuperSORAW]

todays and the 90s are much more advanced

99% of you didnt grow up in the 80s i bet

[tommychow2]

holy shit

[Stalley75]

nice game--back when nba players could actually hit shots

[btdtlol7]

KAJ the #1 of all time!!!!!! No other players these days can imitate or be compared to KAJ!!!!!

[Thejaycefish]

Ahh, old-school NBA. Where every team had good players, they didn't have a one or two superstars to carry them, most of the players had a good mid-range game, there was no paranoia of rigged referees changing the outcome of games, where defense wasn't watered down to touching being a foul, and where you wouldn't get a technical for just talking to the refs. This era was truly where amazing happens.

[bootiack]

kareem such an actor pussy byron a cunt too

[bakerandbaker1]

Did they join this game in progress?

[TheRide123]

If you don't know that the NBA was better in the 80's, then it means that you weren't there!!!! : )

[bscottdp]

Kareem at 39 years old was schooling a young 7-4 Ralph Sampson and young Akeem of the Rockets. Back to Back 40 point games in the 1986 regular season. In the playoffs the Rockets switched to a swarming double team defense on Kareem. Aint no center in 2010 stopping that skyhook. If Ralph and Akeem couldnt come close to stopping it then how on earth are the horrible centers today going to. Pau Gasol is not a great defender so he's not coming close to stopping it.

[bscottdp]

Hold up. Am i really reading Kareem couldnt play today. LOL...The centers in the year 2010 are the worse in the history of the NBA. Shaq is 38 years old. We are talking about 2010 and the best center in this era is NO LOW POST GAME..Dwight Howard. Thats it. The centers in the Western Conference with the exception of Gasol are horrible,

Kareem dropped 40 in back to back games against Akeem and Sampson in the 1986 Regular season at 39 years old

[mrho4speed]

The NBA golden days!! There's more intensity in the first half of this regular season game than the Playoffs of today. Two great teams with HOF line ups. Its too bad Len Bias died becuase the LA & Boston rivalry would have continued past 1987 and lasted several more years giving the NBA the best matchups ever!!

[duhjuce]

No Offense / Defense ..but, I'm just buggin' how folks get more upset about a Basket Ball "game" than the REEL WACK ish that is going on. Dont get me wrong, I used to be 1 of 'em a looooong time ago when Lakers had an actuall TEAM (there's no 'I' in team) Kareem Abdul jabbar, James Worthy, AC Green, Magic Johnson...these Men all paying over littreraly millions if not billions of dollars that NONE of y'all will ever get a taste of even with your side bets..ayt I'm good.

[agirard77]

in '85 bird had a bum elbow

[MerkinMuffly]

No McHale, no problem, Bird was the man.

[MerkinMuffly]

Nice

[agirard77]

why nobody talkin bout david thirdkill?  he da man

[13war25]

What was wrong with the Lakers 9 of the 11 times they met the Celtics in the finals?

[GoingOn9Lives]

No way the 96 Bulls could have beaten the 86 celtics and Im not sure if the 91 bulls could have either. As huge of an MJ fan as a I am. You have to think logically who could stop the celtics frontcourt? Luc longely? granted Rodman could hold any player below their average but all 3 (Mchale, Parish, Walton) no way. The bulls backcourt was way better though. DJ couldnt stop MJ or scottie.

[13war25]

GoingOn9Lives-I hope you're not forgetting a player by the name of..

LARRY BIRD....

[21jbrou]

I totally agree. the 96 Bulls were only the best ever in record only. There run of 6 titles in 8 years was impressive, even in a watered down league, but they wouldnt have beaten the Lakers or Celtics in their heyday. Those teams were too talented and deep. Kareem wouldve destroyed Cartwright or Longley, and Magic wouldve done the same to John Paxson, B.J Armstrong or Ron Harper. Micheal Cooper was a lockdown defender, and im not saying hed shut down Jordan, but he couldve slowed him down.

[Soundtrack1000]

Then players looked like the real grown man, in todays game they look like they have 17 years

[BCH19821091]

If not for injuries and Len Bias killing himself LA would still be stuck at +/- 10 titles.

Look what happened to LA the only 3 years they had injuries in 81,89 and 91. Before the inuuries they were unstopable after the injuries they were simply very good. IN the only year we played LA healthy we beat them in 7

[HeadlessEye]

And who, pray tell, was injured in 1985? Len Bias was coking up on draft night---had he lived, his career would have mirrored Roy Tarpley's if anything.

[bwconklin]

LOL at when Kite knocked down Kareem and he went down like a total pansy. I don't know why but that was hilarious..

[juliojgr19]

The two best teams ever with the two best team players ever. Because of them and their passion for the good basketball milions of persons around the world still love this sport.

[soulman386]

My god, the overall skill of the players was so much better than today. The players today are better athletes no doubt but passing, shooting, and ball handling have declined.

[lololsdadsa]

@soulman386 lol you're watching the 2 best teams of all time what did u expect?

[alcorderyjr]

A clear manifestation 2 how different the game was called back then, Byron Scott punches Jerry Sichting, no technicals just play ball guys, Greg Kite clotheslines Mike McGhee, no flagrant foul just 2 shots, then he spears Kareem, no ejections, just 2 foul shots, then Bird is decapitated n retaliation, just shoot ur 2 shots Larry, that's it. The league was so much more physical back then, it was a man's league, no high schooler was going 2 b playing n that era!

[AceroySangre]

Ofcourse soulman...everything was better in the 80s :)

[Mrcabletwitch]

for some reason everyone looks so tall

[AceroySangre]

The average height was taller back then.

[LuigiLaker]

To see the Lakers and Celtics playing in a regular season game and not a world championship series is indeed rare and very nice..

[MerkinMuffly]

LMAO, Bird still kicks Magic's Ass without McHale, Magic had absolutely 0 chance of beating Bird without Kareem. In 87 Finals Bird wins two with McHale on a broken foot, Parish on two badly sprained ankles and no Bill Walton! Would have won at least 3 if not for terrible officials in game 4. How many games would Magic have won in 87 with Kareem on a broken foot, Worthy two badly sprained ankles and no Mychael Thompson: 0, Bird was the greatest team player ever, no contest.

[mikeycereal]

Man I love hearing Boston fans like Merk Muffy cry over injuries! What's with the "without Kareem" nonsense? You can't take players away!! What is this - Boston fan logic? And didn't the Lakers sweep Boston in the 1984 reg season before giving you that title? Final tally: Lakers 5 titles in 80s, Boston 2. Dynasty!

[jjonah10]

9-2 overall head to head asshole

[mikeycereal]

You weren't alive then asshole. You can't inherit titles you 2008 bandwagon dumbass!

[jjonah10]

take a bath,then comment fuckface

[mikeycereal]

eat a dick, ass clown

[jjonah10]

how does it taste?you're the expert

[jjonah10]

you got that right,the lakers are a bunch of arrogant mother fuckers,2-9 man !!!

[BananaShakeizzle]

Not being racist cause I love Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson, but the celtics had to have some of the best white players in NBA history.

[LuigiLaker]

And another thing, Jerry Sitching must be a little fuckin bitch because he seems to irritate alot of players, two of them are Ralph Sampson and Byron Scott here..

[LuigiLaker]

BTW, was Scott Wedman ever an All-Pro in his tenure with the Celtics?

[manofdef]

No he wasn't, he was an All-Star with the Kansas City Kings before he got traded to Boston from Cleveland.

[LuigiLaker]

Two guys, two of my fav Lakers of all time, Bob McAdoo and Jamaal Wilkes were released after the '84-85 campaign...

[Soundtrack1000]

Bob was also a star in Europe toward the end of his career

[hitman2070]

Ha! Greg Kite! Haven't heard that name in years! What a scrub he was!

Man, these games were wars. Magic, Bird, nothin better.

[eurostandar]

- muscle + spectacle

[SkeffingtonP]

This was a racial Boston vs LA battle in the 80's.

[marts1233]

pfff

[Tito1701]

There was at least one fight in everyone of these Lakers-Celtic games during the 80s

[threeby8887]

In fact, during the 1985 preseason, Maurice Lucas, whom the Lakers traded for, duked it out with Robert Parish, knocking Parish into the stands.

[celticgrl5]

Wow..nice video

[JABP333200]

I have no idea why the 87 Lakers are rated so high. They only beat up on a weak Western Conference and an injured Celtics in the finals. For me, the 85 Lakers were better than the 87 Lakers.

[adheckle]

You are so right. I think the reasson they make such a big deal is it was the first time in a while the Lakers had the best record for the whole league, which is kind of sad considering how weak the Western Confernce was. The 86 Celtics beat much better team in the playoffs. No team the 87 Lakers played in the playoffs had over 50 wins.

[naturalfinish]

As to why 87 is regarded as a better year, Magic, Worthy and Scott were better in 1987 than in 1985. M. Thompson was a better big man option than the 85 roster, only Jabbar was not as potent...I do not remember Celtics being injured to in the finals, their big three was going 40 min a game...no sympathy for the 83, 89,, 91 lakers due to injuries...lastly, regarding competition, in 87 the 2nd place team in Bostons div was Phily with 45 wins, 2nd place in Lakers division was Portland with 49 wins

[adheckle]

The Western Confernce as a whole was weaker. In Eastern Confernce the Hawks were the second best team with 57 wins, the Pistons had 52 wins, and the Bucks had 50 wins. The only other team in the Western Confernce with over 50 wins was the Dallas Mavericks. Back in the Mid-Eighties teams played teams in other divisions the same amount of times as teams in their own division. In the 87 playoffs the Lakers only had to play teams with 37,42,and 39 wins.

[naturalfinish]

perhaps the West was weaker in 1987, but don't discount the Lakers for dominating the conference...in 85-86 the West actually had 6 .500 or better teams to the East's 5...no excuse for Boston in 1988 when they won 57 and the next 2 best teams in their division were under .500 with 38-44 records, blech, sure 3 50 win teams in the central that year, but the West in 1988 also had 4 50 win teams and the Lakers had a 53 win Portland team in the division and then beat a physical Detroit team.

[adheckle]

Actually there is. Kevin Mchale missed the first month of the season and during that month Bird missed a couple of games too. In 1988 the West finally was beginning to be more competive u but the East had still been more competive for more than 4/5's of the decade.

[naturalfinish]

Injuries are part of the game...the Celtics or Lakers debate is one of all time sports questions, but the Magic era still produced 5 rings to Bird's 3...the reasons can be argued but Magic had Bird's number head to head, 1 college championship and 2 head to head championships to 1. Lakers dominated the decade and their style was emulated but not duplicated in the Western Conference and they ran those chumps out of the building...don't get me wrong the 80s Celtics are phenomenal...

[Soundtrack1000]

86 Celtics were  the best team in 80s, do you agree

[21jbrou]

86 Celtics mightve been the best team ever. They were nearly perfect at home. Bird was at his peak, and along with Mchale, Parish and Walton formed the best frontline of all time. Only a handful of teams, like the 83 Sixers or 72 Lakers, mightve beaten that team.

[21jbrou]

Yes the 86 Celtics were the best team of the 80s. they were a tad better than the 87 Lakers and the 83 Sixers. You could argue they were the best team ever

[neverbackdown1983]

@21jbrou Bill Simmons says they are the best team ever in his "Book of Basketball". Not only was there a lot of talent, skills and savvy, they had great chemistry.

[lloydx4]

these people are nothing compared to lakers now.

[uscpathfinder]

the nba was better in the 80's

[then00best]

wow.. any misses??

[celticgrl5]

Umm..what?

[leecompson]

these guys never miss

and there's no question Boston would've easily beaten LA that year in the Finals.

[LYONSPOTTER]

No question about that, leecompson. That year the Celtics were superior. They swept the lakers in the season series, and then dismantled the Rockets who killed the Lakers 4-1 in the Western Conference Finals.

To make matters more interesting, if Len Bias hadn't died in June 1986, the Celtics would have repeated in 87. Who knows what would have happened ever after that?!

[zagy33]

yeah probably,from what i have heard and see len bias was one heck of a player , dont know abot his defence but he seems,fizically,more then capable of guarding magic johnson. also he was a great dunker and i would like to see in your face dunks dunks from him to lakers. too bad he died.

[LuigiLaker]

16 world championships ain't enough for you? The Celts had it far too good for far too long..u knew setbacks were gonna come

[LYONSPOTTER]

I'm not sure you have any qualifications, as a Laker fan, to say that anyone has had it 'too good for too long', being that you have 14 championships and titles in every decade but the 60s. ...Besides, it's not a matter of 'what is enough'. It's a matter that a great basketball player had the opportunity to play with a great championship organization, but never got the chance. We all lost out on seeing one of the greats that never was. Yes the man was imperfect, but have some reverence!

[LuigiLaker]

Yeah..I guess..but you guys still got two more then we do..

[salvador36213]

bias would have been a rookie the lakers in 87 would have still beaten the celtic look at our roster lakers should have 3-peated in 89 but in injuries got us

[adheckle]

You Laker fans always seem to forget your 2 back to back championships came against a completely decimated Boston team in 87 and an injured Isiah Thomas in game 7 in 1988. 1989 was karma

[HeadlessEye]

You know for a fact they would have repeated? Don't answer, no you don't.

[salvador36213]

wdf showtime should of won

[LYONSPOTTER]

That's the deal that you are overlooking: "Showtime" had a hard time beating the Celtics in Boston. Without the baby sky hook in game 4, the Lakers lose 3 straight in Boston. Have you seen film of Bias? This man was a leaper and athletic defender. Someone who could shut down a James Worthy, something McHale with his broken FOOT could not. The Celtics sustained injuries from a lack of depth that Bias would have remedied.

[HeadlessEye]

The Celtics lost 4 home games between '85-'86 and '86-'87, including playoffs. 3 of them were to the Lakers. Try again.

[LYONSPOTTER]

You are right that the Celtics were 40-1 at home in 85-86 during the regular season, and undefeated in the playoffs that year. But they lost games at home in the other two seasons you mentioned, to various clubs. Get your history straight. ...Besides, I was talking about the 87 season and Finals, which obviously saw the Boston club mired by injuries. Try again.

[JoeyPencils]

8;40 kareem goes down like a broad...hard basketball no dirtiness

[LYONSPOTTER]

Kareem was frail. No way he could handle today's centers. Shaq? No way ... Kareem would get squished instantly.

[HeadlessEye]

He'd handle himself a lot better than Bill Russell, that's for sure.

[LYONSPOTTER]

you've seen tape of Russell right? Obviously not.

[HeadlessEye]

Actually, I've seen plenty of Bill Russell, fuck you very much... He was 6'9'' and weighed 220 lbs...He'd be an undersized power forward in today's league. Forget Shaq, he couldn't guard Dwight Howard.

[LYONSPOTTER]

My initial point was that Kareem was weak and would have been pushed around by a Shaq. You brought up Russell. But how does Russell's strength have anything to do with Kareem's weakness against a Shaq? Russell was agile and extremely quick, a great leaper. But as you note, he'd have to be a forward in today's game. He set the tone in the 60s for what defense might later evolve into. It's been nice exchanging with you, but I'm done with this.

[vombat16]

bill russell was 6'10' a bit taller then ben wallace is.

[Soundtrack1000]

Wilt is Wilt but, Russel was and is a one word -- WINNER

[uscpathfinder]

it's clear you know nothing about baketball 6mvp's, all time scoring leader,6 titles,finals mvp a couple of time,an unbelivable college career.3 ncaa title,

[OldGoldenThroat]

Today Pau Gasol has similar build, and he plays center position at very high level.

[bobbymarsh1]

@LYONSPOTTER Kareem would run circle around these young dudes. His skill set is soooo far superior. These players would earn millions

[Fernandocatan]

@LYONSPOTTER

Do u think so? I think that Kareem would easily handle Shaq.

[LYONSPOTTER]

@Fernandocatan: Come on now let's get serious...Kareem was 225ish pounds. Shaq weighs 325. Kareem could not hold him. Shaq in his prime would go for 40 against Kareem every time they matched up. The game has never seen anything like the power that was Shaquille O'Neal. Kareem offensively would score, but not at will. Shaq was just too strong.

[Defender80s]

@LYONSPOTTER This was the 37 year old Karem watch the Kareem in his 20s till about 33 and you will see the Real Kareem. He shot at a higher FG% than Hakeem at ages 21-27 and lowered him to like 44% FG. Imagine a Prime Athletic Kareem

[kemozsvm]

@LYONSPOTTER you don't even know wat you're talking about.

N° 1 scorer ALL TIME. Who's going to beat him, Marcin Gortat or Brok Lopez?

Not to mention the competition the role had at the time. Is there a Moses Malone around? Or a Bill Walton? Or an Olajuwon????

Now back to the books, better luck next time.

[Topazsedalethreat]

@LYONSPOTTER kareem was better than shaq in every year of his age

[zagy33]

great game,sichsting asked for it and got what he deserved.damn those were dirty plays by greg kite,every good team needs that kind of player.i'm impressed how nobody from the lakers wanted to stood up to him,they were frightened! greg kite is the man!

[LuigiLaker]

Fuck that bitch Greg Kite..and those who wanna give me a negative reply..fuck you too.

[whiteboi626]

celestene just keeps hitting outside jumpers man byron should knock him in the teeth

[IRONSEAN7]

wow,,, great stuff,,,,, when you think of a basketball court with players,, how can you not think of green and gold,,,,two GREAT teams and a shitload of great players,,,, thank you,,, go celtics

[lovesvinylchicks]

Posting this video is an early Christmas present! I think a good argument can be made that the 1985-1986 Celtics are one of, if not THE greatest basketball teams of all time. I doubt the Lakers would've beaten the Celtics in the 1986 Finals.

[jp3813]

The '86 Lakers couldn't even get past the twin towers of the Houston Rockets let alone the Celtics' big four. If Walton wasn't injured in the '87 playoffs, the Celtics would've repeated.

[OldGoldenThroat]

Every year is different. In 1987, the Lakers had Thompson instead of Lucas. There was a shift in the attack. Magic was much more aggressive, became #1 option and dominated. Kareem went from 1st to 3rd overall.

'87 Lakers team was too strong and motivated. I do agree Lakers would lose to Celtics in '86. The main reason Lakers lost to Rockets was lack of focus, not matchup. 5 wins, 0 losses in regular season. Celtics did not get chance for revenge, that's all.

[SPL1216]

As a Celtic fan this brings back great memories...The Celts would have beaten the Lakers in '86 if they had beaten Houston (lucky last-second shot by Sampson). But the Lakers were better in '87. Magic and Worthy were in there primes, they were unbelievable. The Celts were hurt in '87 though: Parish, Walton, Wedman, Ainge etc. I would love to have seen if the Celtics were healthy this series(and Len Bias hadn't died). I think it would have gone 7 games... That year, the Lakers were just better.

[adheckle]

Oh come on if the injured 87 Celtics could go 6 games imagine a deep healthy squad plus Len Bias. The Lakers made it to the final more times than the Celtics in the 80's because the Eastern Confernece was more competiive and in the final Lakers would benefit from the two teams in the east duking it out to get there.

[LYONSPOTTER]

JP3813, the 'what if' that you raise concerning Walton is eclipsed 1000 fold by the 'what if' posed by Len Bias' death. RIP.

[Edd1e8]

You're the man for posting this! I remember all too well how this one ends. =(

It would've been one hellva finals if the Rockets didn't knock off the Lakers. This would be the Celtic's last team to be deep enough and athletic enough to compete as the 1987 bunch was VERY thin.

I still think the Celtics would've won if the Lakers made it. It was simply their year.

[JABP333200]

Thanks for putting this up - Lakers V Celtics - it does not get any better