The 2010 NBA Finals will feature the most storied rivalry in professional basketball. We take look at everything these legendary teams have shared.
1959: The Celtics quickly win the series in four games after the shy Lakers mill around the basket and refuse to leave their side of the court
1962: Setting an NBA Finals record that still stands, Celtics center Bill Russell grabs 40 rebounds in the opening game of the series while missing on 40 consecutive scoring attempts
1968: The rivalry heats up and the Lakers put forth their best effort in years thanks to a team loaded with undercover FBI agents monitoring the Black Panthers’ influence in the NBA
1969: The Celtics beat the Lakers for the seventh time in seven NBA championship meetings, causing many to wonder if this is actually a “rivalry” or more of a “situation in which one team beats another team over and over and over again”
1984: The NBA finally sheds its image as a league of black drug addicts as Larry Bird leads the Celtics to victory, establishing the NBA as a league of creepy-looking chinless ground-bound drips
1987: Larry Bird momentarily forgets about the rivalry, dishing the ball to an open Magic Johnson, fiercely guarding Kevin McHale, and repeatedly elbowing Robert Parish in the head
1988: Lakers forward James Worthy scores 36 points, 10 assists, and 16 rebounds in Game 7 of the Finals against the Detroit Pistons, so never mind
