1986–87 Boston Celtics season

NBA basketball season

NBA professional basketball team season
1986–87 Boston Celtics season
Conference champions
Division champions
Head coachK. C. Jones
OwnersDon Gaston
Alan N. Cohen
Paul Dupee
ArenaBoston Garden
Hartford Civic Center
Results
Record59–23 (.720)
PlaceDivision: 1st (Atlantic)
Conference: 1st (Eastern)
Playoff finishNBA Finals
(lost to Lakers 2–4)

Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
TelevisionWLVI
(Gil Santos, Bob Cousy)
SportsChannel New England
(Mike Gorman, Tom Heinsohn)
RadioWRKO
(Johnny Most, Glenn Ordway)
< 1985–86 1987–88 >

The 1986–87 Boston Celtics season was the 41st season of the Boston Celtics in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Celtics entered the season as the defending NBA Champions, having defeated the Houston Rockets in the 1986 NBA Finals in six games, winning their sixteenth NBA championship.

In the playoffs, the Celtics swept the Chicago Bulls in the First Round in three games, defeated the Milwaukee Bucks in the Semi-finals in seven games, and the Detroit Pistons in the conference finals in seven games to reach the NBA Finals for the fifth time in the 1980s. In the Finals, the Celtics faced off against their long time rival, the Los Angeles Lakers, in their third and final matchup in the NBA Finals in the 1980s. The Celtics would lose in six games to the Lakers, and it marked the last time the Celtics made it to the NBA Finals until 2008. Remarkably, the 1987 NBA Finals was the first playoff series for the Celtics in the Bird era in which they did not have the home court advantage, as they had played 24 consecutive series with the home court advantage starting in 1980.

NBA draft

Thanks to the 1984 trade of Gerald Henderson and the subsequent fall of the Seattle SuperSonics, at the end of the 1985–86 season the Celtics owned not only the best team in the NBA but also the second pick in the 1986 NBA draft. The Celtics drafted Len Bias with the pick and had high hopes for the young Maryland Terrapins star. The hope was that his presence would ensure that the franchise would remain a powerhouse after Bird, McHale, and Parish retired. Unfortunately, Bias died 48 hours after he was drafted, after using cocaine at a party and overdosing.[1]

Unlike the prior year, the Celtics were forced to endure major injuries to several key players including Bill Walton, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish. With a road record of 20–21, the Celtics were a sub-.500 road team for the first time in the Larry Bird era and the first time since the 1978–79 season. However, they continued with the previous season's historic dominance at home with a record of 39–2 at Boston Garden.

Round Pick Player Position Nationality School/Club Team
1 2 Len Bias Forward  United States Maryland
4 93 Tony Benford N/A  United States Texas Tech
5 116 Dave Colbert N/A  United States Dayton
6 139 Greg Wendt N/A  United States Detroit
7 162 Tom Ivey N/A  United States Boston University

Regular season

Season standings

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W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-Boston Celtics 59 23 .720 39–2 20–21 15–9
x-Philadelphia 76ers 45 37 .549 14 28–13 17–24 12–12
x-Washington Bullets 42 40 .512 17 27–14 15–26 13–11
New Jersey Nets 24 58 .293 35 19–22 5–36 12–12
New York Knicks 24 58 .293 35 18–23 6–35 8–16
#
Eastern Conference
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  • e
Team W L PCT GB
1 c-Boston Celtics 59 23 .720
2 y-Atlanta Hawks 57 25 .695 2
3 x-Detroit Pistons 52 30 .634 7
4 x-Milwaukee Bucks 50 32 .610 9
5 x-Philadelphia 76ers 45 37 .549 14
6 x-Washington Bullets 42 40 .512 17
7 x-Indiana Pacers 41 41 .500 18
8 x-Chicago Bulls 40 42 .488 19
9 Cleveland Cavaliers 31 51 .378 28
10 New Jersey Nets 24 58 .293 35
11 New York Knicks 24 58 .293 35

Record vs. opponents

1986-87 NBA Records
Team ATL BOS CHI CLE DAL DEN DET GSW HOU IND LAC LAL MIL NJN NYK PHI PHO POR SAC SAS SEA UTA WAS
Atlanta 3–3 4–2 4–2 2–0 2–0 3–3 1–1 1–1 3–3 2–0 1–1 3–3 5–0 5–1 3–3 1–1 1–1 2–0 2–0 2–0 2–0 5–0
Boston 3–3 6–0 3–2 2–0 2–0 3–2 2–0 2–0 5–1 2–0 0–2 3–3 4–2 4–2 3–3 2–0 2–0 2–0 2–0 2–0 1–1 4–2
Chicago 2–4 0–6 5–1 1–1 1–1 3–3 0–2 0–2 3–2 2–0 0–2 4–2 3–2 4–2 3–3 1–1 1–1 1–1 1–1 2–0 0–2 3–3
Cleveland 2–4 2–3 1–5 0–2 1–1 1–5 1–1 0–2 3–3 2–0 0–2 1–5 4–2 4–1 2–4 1–1 1–1 1–1 1–1 1–1 0–2 2–4
Dallas 0–2 0–2 1–1 2–0 4–2 1–1 5–0 3–3 0–2 5–0 3–2 2–0 2–0 2–0 2–0 3–2 2–3 5–1 4–2 5–0 3–3 1–1
Denver 0–2 0–2 1–1 1–1 2–4 0–2 4–1 3–3 1–1 2–3 0–5 1–1 2–0 2–0 0–2 3–2 3–2 2–4 5–1 2–3 2–4 1–1
Detroit 3–3 2–3 3–3 5–1 1–1 2–0 1–1 1–1 3–3 2–0 1–1 3–3 5–1 6–0 5–0 1–1 0–2 1–1 1–1 2–0 1–1 3–3
Golden State 1–1 0–2 2–0 1–1 0–5 1–4 1–1 4–1 0–2 6–0 2–4 0–2 2–0 2–0 1–1 1–5 4–2 4–1 4–1 4–2 2–3 0–2
Houston 1–1 0–2 2–0 2–0 3–3 3–3 1–1 1–4 2–0 4–1 1–4 0–2 1–1 1–1 0–2 3–2 2–3 5–1 5–1 1–4 3–3 1–1
Indiana 3–3 1–5 2–3 3–3 2–0 1–1 3–3 2–0 0–2 2–0 0–2 2–4 5–1 3–2 2–4 1–1 0–2 1–1 2–0 1–1 1–1 4–2
L.A. Clippers 0–2 0–2 0–2 0–2 0–5 3–2 0–2 0–6 1–4 0–2 0–6 0–2 1–1 0–2 0–2 1–5 0–6 1–4 1–4 2–4 2–3 0–2
L.A. Lakers 1–1 2–0 2–0 2–0 2–3 5–0 1–1 4–2 4–1 2–0 6–0 1–1 2–0 2–0 2–0 5–1 5–1 5–0 4–1 4–2 3–2 1–1
Milwaukee 3–3 3–3 2–4 5–1 0–2 1–1 3–3 2–0 2–0 4–2 2–0 1–1 4–2 4–2 2–3 2–0 0–2 2–0 1–1 2–0 1–1 4–1
New Jersey 0–5 2–4 2–3 2–4 0–2 0–2 1–5 0–2 1–1 1–5 1–1 0–2 2–4 5–1 3–3 1–1 0–2 0–2 0–2 0–2 1–1 2–4
New York 1–5 2–4 2–4 1–4 0–2 0–2 0–6 0–2 1–1 2–3 2–0 0–2 2–4 1–5 3–3 1–1 0–2 2–0 1–1 0–2 1–1 2–4
Philadelphia 3–3 3–3 3–3 4–2 0–2 2–0 0–5 1–1 2–0 4–2 2–0 0–2 3–2 3–3 3–3 1–1 2–0 2–0 1–1 2–0 1–1 3–3
Phoenix 1–1 0–2 1–1 1–1 2–3 2–3 1–1 5–1 2–3 1–1 5–1 1–5 0–2 1–1 1–1 1–1 2–4 2–3 2–3 1–5 4–1 0–2
Portland 1–1 0–2 1–1 1–1 3–2 2–3 2–0 2–4 3–2 2–0 6–0 1–5 2–0 2–0 2–0 0–2 4–2 3–2 4–1 4–2 3–2 1–1
Sacramento 0–2 0–2 1–1 1–1 1–5 4–2 1–1 1–4 1–5 1–1 4–1 0–5 0–2 2–0 0–2 0–2 3–2 2–3 3–3 2–3 1–5 1–1
San Antonio 0–2 0–2 1–1 1–1 2–4 1–5 1–1 1–4 1–5 0–2 4–1 1–4 1–1 2–0 1–1 1–1 3–2 1–4 3–3 1–4 2–4 0–2
Seattle 0–2 0–2 0–2 1–1 0–5 3–2 0–2 2–4 4–1 1–1 4–2 2–4 0–2 2–0 2–0 0–2 5–1 2–4 3–2 4–1 3–2 1–1
Utah 0–2 1–1 2–0 2–0 3–3 4–2 1–1 3–2 3–3 1–1 3–2 2–3 1–1 1–1 1–1 1–1 1–4 2–3 5–1 4–2 2–3 1–1
Washington 0–5 2–4 3–3 4–2 1–1 1–1 3–3 2–0 1–1 2–4 2–0 1–1 1–4 4–2 4–2 3–3 2–0 1–1 1–1 2–0 1–1 1–1

Game log

1986-87 game log
October
Game Date Opponent Score Location Record
1 Fri. Oct. 31 Washington Bullets 120-102 Boston Garden 1-0
November
Game Date Opponent Score Location Record
2 Sat. Nov. 1 @ Milwaukee Bucks 105-111 Milwaukee Arena (MECCA) 1-1
3 Wed. Nov. 5 Indiana Pacers 133-102 Boston Garden 2-1
4 Fri. Nov. 7 @Washington Bullets 88-86 Capital Centre 3-1
5 Tue. Nov. 11 @ New Jersey Nets 110-114 Brendan Byrne Arena 3-2
6 Wed. Nov. 12 Milwaukee Bucks 124-116 Boston Garden 4-2
7 Fri. Nov. 14 @ Chicago Bulls 124-105 Chicago Stadium 5-2
8 Sat. Nov. 15 @ Detroit Pistons 118-111 Pontiac Silverdome 6-2
9 Wed. Nov. 19 Atlanta Hawks 111-107 Boston Garden 7-2
10 Fri. Nov. 21 Golden State Warriors 135-120 Boston Garden 8-2
11 Sat. Nov. 22 @ Atlanta Hawks 96-97 The Omni 8-3
12 Tue. Nov. 25 @ Philadelphia 76ers 100-102 The Spectrum 8-4
13 Wed. Nov. 26 New York Knicks 101-90 Boston Garden 9-4
14 Fri. Nov. 28 San Antonio Spurs 111-96 Boston Garden 10-4
December
Game Date Opponent Score Location Record
15 Tue. Dec. 2 Washington Bullets 109-117 Hartford Civic Center 10-5
16 Wed. Dec. 3 Denver Nuggets 119-113 Boston Garden 11-5
17 Fri. Dec. 5 Philadelphia 76ers 108-106 Boston Garden 12-5
18 Sat. Dec. 6 @ Cleveland Cavaliers 86-88 Richfield Coliseum 12-6
19 Wed. Dec. 10 New Jersey Nets 108-98 Boston Garden 13-6
20 Fri. Dec. 12 Los Angeles Lakers 110-117 Boston Garden 13-7
21 Sat. Dec. 13 @ Washington Bullets 105-98 Capital Centre 14-7
22 Tue. Dec. 16 @ New York Knicks 107-96 Madison Square Garden 15-7
23 Wed. Dec. 17 Indiana Pacers 113-101 Boston Garden 16-7
24 Fri. Dec. 19 @ Philadelphia 76ers 100-122 The Spectrum 16-8
25 Sat. Dec. 20 @ Milwaukee Bucks 100-120 Milwaukee Arena (MECCA) 16-9
26 Fri. Dec. 26 @ Phoenix Suns 122-112 Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum 17-9
27 Sat. Dec. 27 @ Los Angeles Clippers 114-101 L.A. Sports Arena 18-9
28 Mon. Dec. 29 @ Sacramento Kings 119-102 ARCO Arena I 19-9
29 Tue. Dec. 30 @ Seattle SuperSonics 104-102 Seattle Center Coliseum 20-9
January
Game Date Opponent Score Location Record
30 Fri. Jan. 2 Chicago Bulls 113-99 Boston Garden 21-9
31 Wed. Jan. 7 Milwaukee Bucks 119-92 Boston Garden 22-9
32 Fri. Jan. 9 Sacramento Kings 109-99 Boston Garden 23-9
33 Sat. Jan. 10 @ Detroit Pistons 101-118 Pontiac Silverdome 23-10
34 Tue. Jan. 13 @ New Jersey Nets 123-117 Brendan Byrne Arena 24-10
35 Wed. Jan. 14 Dallas Mavericks 117-108 Boston Garden 25-10
36 Fri. Jan. 16 Cleveland Cavaliers 133-128 (OT) Boston Garden 26-10
37 Sun. Jan. 18 Houston Rockets 122-99 Boston Garden 27-10
38 Mon. Jan. 19 @ New York Knicks 109-111 Madison Square Garden 27-11
39 Wed. Jan. 21 Indiana Pacers 130-100 Boston Garden 28-11
40 Fri. Jan. 23 Atlanta Hawks 126-106 Boston Garden 29-11
41 Sun. Jan. 25 Philadelphia 76ers 111-96 Boston Garden 30-11
42 Tue. Jan. 27 @ Chicago Bulls 105-97 Chicago Stadium 31-11
43 Wed. Jan. 28 Chicago Bulls 132-103 Boston Garden 32-11
44 Fri. Jan. 30 @ Indiana Pacers 100-94 Market Square Arena 33-11
February
Game Date Opponent Score Location Record
45 Tue. Feb. 3 @ Atlanta Hawks 123-126 (OT) The Omni 33-12
46 Wed. Feb. 4 Cleveland Cavaliers 104-102 Boston Garden 34-12
47 Tue. Feb. 10 @ Denver Nuggets 119-105 McNichols Sports Arena 35-12
48 Thu. Feb. 12 @ Golden State Warriors 134-112 Oakland Coliseum 36-12
49 Fri. Feb. 13 @ Portland Trail Blazers 131-116 Memorial Coliseum 37-12
50 Sun. Feb. 15 @ Los Angeles Lakers 103-106 The Forum 37-13
51 Mon. Feb. 16 @ Utah Jazz 89-109 Salt Palace 37-14
52 Wed. Feb. 18 @ Dallas Mavericks 113-96 Reunion Arena 38-14
53 Thu. Feb. 19 @ Houston Rockets 99-92 The Summit 39-14
54 Sat. Feb. 21 @ San Antonio Spurs 121-113 HemisFair Arena 40-14
55 Mon. Feb. 23 New Jersey Nets 116-103 Hartford Civic Center 41-14
56 Wed. Feb. 25 Portland Trail Blazers 122-116 Boston Garden 42-14
57 Fri. Feb. 27 @ Atlanta Hawks 105-115 The Omni 42-15
March
Game Date Opponent Score Location Record
58 Sun. Mar. 1 Detroit Pistons 112-102 Boston Garden 43-15
59 Wed. Mar. 4 Utah Jazz 123-105 Boston Garden 44-15
60 Fri. Mar. 6 Los Angeles Clippers 132-111 Boston Garden 45-15
61 Sun. Mar. 8 @ Detroit Pistons 119-122 (OT) Pontiac Silverdome 45-16
62 Wed. Mar. 11 Phoenix Suns 118-109 Boston Garden 46-16
63 Fri. Mar. 13 @ Indiana Pacers 109-116 Market Square Arena 46-17
64 Sun. Mar. 15 New York Knicks 113-104 Boston Garden 47-17
65 Tue. Mar. 17 @ Milwaukee Bucks 115-123 Milwaukee Arena (MECCA) 47-18
66 Wed. Mar. 18 Milwaukee Bucks 120-102 Boston Garden 48-18
67 Fri. Mar. 20 Seattle SuperSonics 112-108 Boston Garden 49-18
68 Sun. Mar. 22 New Jersey Nets 116-104 Boston Garden 50-18
69 Tue. Mar. 24 Cleveland Cavaliers 111-88 Hartford Civic Center 51-18
70 Thu. Mar. 26 @ Washington Bullets 103-106 Capital Centre 51-19
71 Fri. Mar. 27 @ Chicago Bulls 111-106 Chicago Stadium 52-19
72 Sun. Mar. 29 Philadelphia 76ers 118-100 Boston Garden 53-19
73 Tue. Mar. 31 @ New York Knicks 120-128 Madison Square Garden 53-20
April
Game Date Opponent Score Location Record
74 Wed. Apr. 1 Washington Bullets 103-86 Boston Garden 54-20
75 Fri. Apr. 3 Detroit Pistons 119-115 (OT) Boston Garden 55-20
76 Sun. Apr. 5 @ Philadelphia 76ers 104-106 (OT) The Spectrum 55-21
77 Tue. Apr. 7 @ Cleveland Cavaliers 83-107 Richfield Coliseum 55-22
78 Fri. Apr. 10 @ New Jersey Nets 108-117 Brendan Byrne Arena 55-23
79 Sun. Apr. 12 New York Knicks 119-107 Boston Garden 56-23
80 Wed. Apr. 15 @ Indiana Pacers 108-85 Market Square Arena 57-23
81 Fri. Apr. 17 Chicago Bulls 108-105 Boston Garden 58-23
82 Sun. Apr. 19 Atlanta Hawks 118-107 Boston Garden 59-23
1986-87 Schedule

Roster

1986–87 Boston Celtics roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB From
SG 44 Ainge, Danny 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1959-03-17 BYU
SF 33 Bird, Larry (C) 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1956-12-07 Indiana State
SG 34 Carlisle, Rick 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1959-10-27 Virginia
SF 20 Daye, Darren 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1960-11-30 UCLA
SG 43 Henry, Conner 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1963-07-21 UC Santa Barbara
PG 3 Johnson, Dennis 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1954-09-18 Pepperdine
C 50 Kite, Greg 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 250 lb (113 kg) 1961-08-05 BYU
PF 32 McHale, Kevin 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1957-12-19 Minnesota
C 00 Parish, Robert 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1953-08-30 Centenary
PF 31 Roberts, Fred 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 218 lb (99 kg) 1960-08-10 BYU
PG 12 Sichting, Jerry 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 168 lb (76 kg) 1956-11-29 Purdue
PG 11 Vincent, Sam 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1963-05-18 Michigan State
C 5 Walton, Bill 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1952-11-05 UCLA
SF 8 Wedman, Scott 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1952-07-29 Colorado
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured Injured

Roster
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Player stats

Note: GP= Games played; REB= Rebounds; AST= Assists; STL = Steals; BLK = Blocks; PTS = Points; AVG = Scoring Average

Player GP REB AST STL BLK PTS AVG
Larry Bird 74 682 566 135 70 2076 28.1
Kevin McHale 77 763 198 38 172 2008 26.1
Robert Parish 80 851 173 64 144 1403 17.5
Dennis Johnson 79 261 594 87 38 1062 13.4
Danny Ainge 71 242 400 101 14 1053 14.8
Jerry Sichting 78 91 187 40 1 448 5.7
Fred Roberts 73 190 62 22 20 402 5.5
Darren Daye 61 124 75 25 7 236 3.9
Sam Vincent 46 27 59 13 1 171 3.7
Greg Kite 74 169 27 17 46 123 1.7
Conner Henry 36 27 27 6 1 98 2.7
Rick Carlisle 42 30 35 8 0 80 1.9
Bill Walton 10 31 9 1 10 28 2.8
David Thirdkill 17 19 2 2 0 25 1.5
Scott Wedman 6 9 6 2 2 20 3.3
Andre Turner 3 2 1 0 0 4 1.3

Playoffs

1987 playoff game log
First round: 3–0 (home: 2–0; road: 1–0)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance
Series
1 April 23 Chicago W 108–104 Kevin McHale (21) Robert Parish (11) Larry Bird (13) Boston Garden
14,890
1–0
2 April 26 Chicago W 105–96 Larry Bird (29) McHale, Parish (10) Larry Bird (8) Boston Garden
14,890
2–0
3 April 28 @ Chicago W 105–94 Larry Bird (32) Larry Bird (14) Dennis Johnson (10) Chicago Stadium
18,122
3–0
Conference Semi-finals: 4–3 (home: 3–1; road: 1–2)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance
Series
1 May 5 Milwaukee W 111–98 Larry Bird (40) Robert Parish (12) Bird, Johnson (7) Boston Garden
14,890
1–0
2 May 6 Milwaukee W 126–124 Bird, Ainge (30) Larry Bird (10) Dennis Johnson (10) Boston Garden
14,890
2–0
3 May 8 @ Milwaukee L 121–126 (OT) Dennis Johnson (32) Robert Parish (16) Dennis Johnson (14) MECCA Arena
11,052
2–1
4 May 10 @ Milwaukee W 138–137 (2OT) Larry Bird (42) Kevin McHale (11) Dennis Johnson (12) MECCA Arena
11,052
3–1
5 May 13 Milwaukee L 124–129 Robert Parish (30) Robert Parish (16) Larry Bird (12) Boston Garden
14,890
3–2
6 May 15 @ Milwaukee L 111–121 Dennis Johnson (25) Kevin McHale (16) Dennis Johnson (14) MECCA Arena
11,052
3–3
7 May 17 Milwaukee W 119–113 Larry Bird (31) Robert Parish (19) Dennis Johnson (10) Boston Garden
14,890
4–3
Conference finals: 4–3 (home: 4–0; road: 0–3)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance
Series
1 May 19 Detroit W 104–91 Robert Parish (31) Larry Bird (16) Larry Bird (11) Boston Garden
14,890
1–0
2 May 21 Detroit W 110–101 Larry Bird (31) Bird, Parish (9) Larry Bird (12) Boston Garden
14,890
2–0
3 May 23 @ Detroit L 104–122 Sam Vincent (18) Larry Bird (11) Dennis Johnson (8) Pontiac Silverdome
23,525
2–1
4 May 24 @ Detroit L 119–145 Sam Vincent (18) Kevin McHale (9) Sam Vincent (7) Pontiac Silverdome
27,387
2–2
5 May 26 Detroit W 108–107 Larry Bird (36) Larry Bird (12) Larry Bird (9) Boston Garden
14,890
3–2
6 May 28 @ Detroit L 105–113 Larry Bird (35) Kevin McHale (12) Dennis Johnson (11) Pontiac Silverdome
28,383
3–3
7 May 30 Detroit W 117–114 Larry Bird (37) Robert Parish (11) Dennis Johnson (11) Boston Garden
14,890
4–3
NBA Finals: 2–4 (home: 2–1; road: 0–3)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance
Series
1 June 2 @ L.A. Lakers L 113–126 Larry Bird (32) Larry Bird (7) Dennis Johnson (13) The Forum
17,505
0–1
2 June 4 @ L.A. Lakers L 122–141 Larry Bird (23) Robert Parish (14) Dennis Johnson (9) The Forum
17,505
0–2
3 June 7 L.A. Lakers W 109–103 Larry Bird (30) Larry Bird (12) Ainge, McHale (5) Boston Garden
14,890
1–2
4 June 9 L.A. Lakers L 106–107 Kevin McHale (25) Kevin McHale (13) Dennis Johnson (14) Boston Garden
14,890
1–3
5 June 11 L.A. Lakers W 123–108 Dennis Johnson (25) Kevin McHale (14) Dennis Johnson (11) Boston Garden
14,890
2–3
6 June 14 @ L.A. Lakers L 93–106 Dennis Johnson (33) Johnson, McHale (10) Danny Ainge (6) The Forum
17,505
2–4
1987 schedule

Award winners

  • Larry Bird, All-NBA First Team
  • Kevin McHale, All-NBA First Team
  • Kevin McHale, All-NBA Defensive First Team

References

  1. ^ "All-American Basketball Star, Celtic Choice, Dies Suddenly". The New York Times. June 20, 1986.
  • Celtics on Database Basketball
  • Celtics on Basketball Reference
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Bold indicates NBA Finals victory
Boston Celtics 1986-87 NBA Eastern Conference Champions

00 Parish | 3 Johnson | 5 Walton | 7 Turner | 8 Wedman | 11 Vincent | 12 Sichting | 20 Daye | 32 McHale | 33 Bird | 34 Carlisle | 43 Henry | 44 Ainge | 45 Thirdkill | 50 Kite | Coach Jones