The Celtics are one of the most storied franchises in the history of basketball on the NBA arena. They have won 17 NBA Championships, more than any other team in league history, and are considered by many to be the best starting five ever assembled.
The 1985-86 Boston Celtics roster includes Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, Robert Parish, Dennis Johnson and Danny Ainge. This team is often referred to as the best starting five ever.
Larry Bird has said that he would play anybody against his 1986 NBA championship squad. The 1985-86 Boston Celtics went 67-15 during the regular season, cruised through the playoffs, and won their third NBA title in the 1980s. It’s possible that this is the best Celtics squad ever. Is it possible that the Celtics’ starting five is the greatest in NBA history?
The Boston Celtics, led by Larry Bird, were ravenous heading into the 1985-86 season.
The team photo of the Boston Celtics in 1985-86. From left to right in the first row: Danny Ainge, Scott Wedman, Vice Chairman of the Board Alan Cohen General Manager Jan Volk Red Auerbach, President, K.C. Jones, Head Coach, Don Gaston, Chairman of the Board, Larry Bird, Dennis Johnson, Larry Bird, Larry Bird, Larry Bird, Larry Bird, Larry Bird, Larry Bird, Larry Bird, Larry Bird, Larry Bird, Larry Bird, Larry Bird, Larry Bird, In the back row: (Left to right) Jim Rodgers, assistant coach; Sam Vincent, Rick Carlisle, Greg Kite; Robert Parish; Bill Walton; Kevin McHale; David Thirdkill; Jerry Sichting; Chris Ford, assistant coach; Ray Melchiore, trainer | Getty Images
From 1984 through 1987, the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers took turns winning the NBA Finals. In 1984 and 1986, Boston won their second and third championships of the decade, while the Lakers won in 1985 and 1987. For good measure, they did it again in 1988. The Lakers’ victory in 1985 may have paved the way for Boston’s championship season in 1986. Boston was ecstatic.
In a film honoring the 1986 championship, Danny Ainge stated, “I don’t believe we ever felt like we were going to win simply by turning up.” “We had a lot of faith in ourselves. When you have guys like that on your squad, you can be extremely confidence in them.
We believed we were the greatest squad in 1985, so we let one slip away. That, I believe, provided further incentive for us.”
Jerry Sichting, a backup player who joined the Celtics from the Indiana Pacers in 1985, sensed his new squad was hungry.
“Right away, I understood the entire summer that their objective could only be accomplished if they won the championship,” Sichting said.
The Boston Celtics, led by Larry Bird, were a selfless team on their way to winning the NBA championship in 1986.
The Celtics possessed the skill without a doubt. Maybe they ate too much. Boston was led by Bird and had superstars Kevin McHale and Robert Parish in the frontcourt. The backcourt was handled by Dennis Johnson and Ainge. It didn’t matter to any of them which stars shone the brightest while they shone.
On any given day, all five starters might score. The open guy might be found by any of the five. It didn’t matter who scored as long as the team came out on top.
Sichting said, “We simply had a lot of players that played unselfishly.” “We had a bunch of players who understood how to play and hit the open guy,” says the player.
“Everyone helped each other out,” McHale added. “Everyone was able to pass, and everyone moved. We had plenty of room. We just had a whole bunch of guys that were aware of the importance of space and mobility.
“At the end of the day, being a great team mattered a lot more than being a great individual. We would have scored more but lost less if we had been on other teams.”
Was the 1985-86 Boston Celtics’ starting five the greatest ever?
It’s difficult to choose the greatest player, team, or coach in NBA history, as it is with every other discussion about the league, but we’ll try. Is Bird, Ainge, Johnson, McHale, and Parish the greatest starting five of all time? It’s a difficult decision.
Aside from the 1985-86 Celtics, there are two starting groups that stand out. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, James Worthy, Byron Scott, and A.C Green were all part of the 1987-88 Lakers squad. Also, the 1962-63 Celtics squad, which had Bill Russell, Bob Cousy, Sam Jones, John Havlicek, and Tommy Heinsohn, has to be considered among the greatest.
Others are the 1969-70 Los Angeles Lakers (Wilt Chamberlain, Jerry West), the 1996-97 Chicago Bulls (Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman), and the 2007-08 Boston Celtics (Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen), to mention a few.
However, Abdul-Jabbar was 40 years old when the Lakers won the championship in 1987-88. He was nearing the conclusion of his Hall of Fame career, notwithstanding his continued effectiveness. Scott scored 21.7 points per game for the squad that year.
The Celtics of 1962-63 may have the most well-known players among the teams competing for the top starting five. All five are inducted into the Hall of Fame. Cousy was in his 12th and last season with the Celtics, while Havlicek was a rookie who had yet to distinguish himself.
Because its five players were still in the prime of their careers, the 1985-86 Celtics had a small advantage. On their route to another title, the squad had four Hall of Famers in the starting lineup and only lost three playoff games. Bird earned his third consecutive MVP award as the Celtics had their greatest season in franchise history.
When Larry Bird was approached for autographs, he used to sign another superstar’s name.
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The 85-86 celtics starting lineup is a team that was the best ever. It has been said that this team would have beaten any other NBA team in a seven game series.
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