The latest in a continuing series on the 1980s NBA, the 1983-84 Season Review section is now posted. The Boston Celtics win their 15th title (40 years ago), the Houston Rockets start rebuilding, the NBA coaching carousel hits a new gear, and more.
I continue to experiment with Datawrapper, and used it to try to replicate a chart from the article that was originally created using Microsoft Excel. The Datawrapper layout is a little different, but I like it too.
Larry Bird and the Celtics win the 1984 NBA Championship, defeating Magic Johnson and the Lakers in a seven-game classic that elevates the NBA into a first-class pop culture phenomenon. The latest in a continuing series on the 1980s NBA, a summary of that series is now posted.
The latest in a continuing series. Red Auerbach drafts Larry Bird, trades for Robert Parish (and the pick that turned into Kevin McHale), swindles the Suns to acquire Dennis Johnson, and swaps Cedric Maxwell for Bill Walton. Boston had missed the playoffs two years in a row at the end of the 1970’s, but these moves like these resulted in three championships in six years during the early 1980’s.
The latest in a continuing series on the 1980s NBA, the 1982-83 Season Review section is now posted. Julius Erving, with a big assist from Moses Malone, adds an NBA championship to his resume as the Philadelphia 76ers sweep the Los Angeles Lakers. The 76ers are still waiting to win another.
One example of how much the NBA has changed in 40 years: During the 2023 Finals the Denver Nuggets took more 3-pointers than the 1983 76ers attempted during their entire regular season. To be fair, the 76ers were next-to-last in the league in 3-point attempts that year; only the Lakers took fewer threes (96). Ironically, Andrew Toney of the 76ers used the 3-pointer more than most players, finishing the year tied for 7th in 3FGM (22) and 10th in 3FGA (76). But the rest of the team shot a woeful 3-for-33 beyond the arc.
Now that the Celtics have dispatched the 76ers in the 2023 NBA Playoffs, I feel more comfortable posting the latest article in the 80s Era + 40 series.
In September 1982 the Philadelphia 76ers acquired the reigning NBA MVP Moses Malone in an attempt to win the franchise’s second title since moving to Philadelphia in 1963. Malone would win the MVP again, and the 76ers won 65 games during the regular season before storming through the 1983 playoffs, posting a 12-1 record on their way to the championship. Philadelphia took advantage of down years by their two top rivals (the Celtics were tired of playing for the domineering Bill Fitch, and the Lakers were riddled with injuries) but they deserve to be celebrated as the best 76ers team of the 80s Era. The 40th anniversary of their last championship is coming up on May 31.
The latest in a continuing series. Pat Williams and Sixers buy Dr. J, sign Moses Malone, and eventually build a championship team after years of frustration.
Larry Bird retired from the Boston Celtics 30 years ago this week, August 18, 1992. Bird was my favorite athlete when I was a kid. I’m not athletic, but I tried to emulate his work ethic in my schoolwork and other pursuits. I loved Bird’s shooting and passing ability, of course, but I also admired his self-confidence, something that I probably had too much of in my youth, and not enough of now that I’m middle-aged.
From the front page of the Providence Journal, August 19, 1992.
By the summer of 1992, it was clear that Bird’s back woes had rendered him a shadow of his former self. Most pro athletes experience a gradual decline as they age; Bird disintegrated. The sight of him lying on his stomach on the floor near the Celtics’ bench during games, struggling to keep his back loose, was heartbreaking.
During the playoffs that final season, Bird missed the Celtics’ first-round sweep of the Indiana Pacers, and Boston had built a 2-1 lead over the Cleveland Cavaliers in the semifinals by the time he returned. Bird came off the bench for two games, then started Games 6 and 7. The Celtics lost three of four to end their season. Their lone victory was a 122-91 thrashing of the Cavaliers in Game 6, Bird’s final game at the Boston Garden (featuring 16 points, 14 assists, and 6 rebounds in 37 minutes). Finishing up against the historically mediocre Cavaliers in Cleveland two days later was hardly a fitting end to his career, but it did provide a bit of coincidental symmetry: Bird had made his NBA debut against the Houston Rockets on October 12, 1979, then played a home-and-home series against the Cavaliers. His last official NBA road game was played in the same building as his first.
The 1992 Olympics provided a more fitting postscript. Bird was hobbled throughout, but got to receive a gold medal alongside Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, and a team full of superstars who had become famous by playing basketball in a league that he had helped to save.
The latest in a continuing series, the 1981-82 Season Review section is now posted. Malone wins the MVP and is the league’s highest paid player, but Magic captures his second title.
