1982–83 Philadelphia 76ers season
The 1982–83 Philadelphia 76ers season was the 37th season of the franchise (going back to their days as the Syracuse Nationals) and their 20th season in Philadelphia. The 76ers entered the season as runner-ups in the 1982 NBA Finals, where they lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in six games.
Harold Katz bought the 76ers in 1982. On his watch, the final piece of the championship puzzle was completed before the 1982–83 season when they acquired free-agent center Moses Malone from the Houston Rockets in a sign-and-trade for Caldwell Jones.
1985–86 Boston Celtics season
In 1985–86, the Boston Celtics won 67 games, going 40–1 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. The 67 total wins were one win shy of tying their franchise record of 68 wins set in 1972–73, and tied for seventh all-time for total wins by a team in a single season.
The Celtics were coming off of an NBA Finals loss in six games to the Los Angeles Lakers, marking the first instance the Celtics were defeated by the Lakers in the NBA Finals.
1986–87 Los Angeles Lakers season
The 1986–87 Los Angeles Lakers season was the 41st season of the franchise, 39th in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and 27th in Los Angeles. Coming from a shocking defeat to the Houston Rockets in the previous season's Western Conference Finals in five games, where they won the first game, but proceeded to drop the next four, the Lakers avenged their playoff upset by making the NBA Finals for the sixth time in the 1980s. Prior to reaching the NBA Finals, in the playoffs, the Lakers swept the 1986-87 Denver Nuggets in three games in the First Round, defeated the Golden State Warriors in five games in the Semifinals, and swept the Seattle SuperSonics in four games in the Conference Finals. This team was named one of the 10 greatest teams in NBA history.
1988–89 Detroit Pistons season
The 1988-89 NBA season was the Pistons' 41st season in the NBA and 32nd season in the Detroit metropolitan area. The Pistons moved from the Pontiac Silverdome to the brand-new Palace of Auburn Hills before the start of the season, which culminated in the Pistons' first NBA championship, sweeping the Lakers in four games in the NBA Finals a rematch from last year's NBA Finals and avenging their NBA Finals loss. Following the season, Rick Mahorn was picked up by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 1989 expansion draft and was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers soon after.
The Pistons and Lakers would face each other again 15 years later in the NBA Finals in 2004, where the Pistons won in five games en route to their third NBA championship despite being underdogs to the heavily-favored Lakers.
[ PM | Exclude me | Exclude from subreddit | FAQ / Information | Source ] Downvote to remove | v0.28