After a decade of battles, the Showtime era concluded its chapter of the Lakers-Celtics rivalry with one last duel in the 1987 NBA Finals.
The series began with a statement at the Forum as the Lakers bolted out to a 21-point halftime lead. Johnson played about flawlessly — with 29 points, 13 rebounds, eight assists, and zero turnovers — while James Worthy racked up 33 points.
The duo was enough to overcome a 33-point night from No. 33 Bird as the Lakers cruised to a 126-113 win.
Boston changed course in Game 2 by focusing on shutting down Magic to force someone else to try to take over. L.A.’s shooting guards accepted the challenge, as Michael Cooper drained a then-playoff record 6-of-7 3-pointers, while Byron Scott led his team with 24 points.
And for all the effort on preventing a big game from Magic, he still ended up with 22 points and 20 assists in his team’s 141-122 rout.
But the Celtics weren’t about to surrender as the series shifted to Boston. Game 3 saw a classic duel between Johnson (32 points, 11 rebounds, nine assists) and Bird (30 points, 12 rebounds) as Boston barked back to capture a 109-103 win.
Looking to even up the series, the Celtics led by as many as 16 points in Game 4 before the Lakers rallied to tie the game at 95 with 5:30 left.
Boston then rolled off eight unanswered points, though L.A. held firm and eventually took the lead on an alley-oop from Magic to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in the final minute.
But Bird stayed cool and splashed a 3-pointer for a 106-104 edge with 12 seconds left. Abdul-Jabbar was fouled on the next possession but went 1-of-2 from the line.
Mychal Thompson fought with Kevin McHale for the rebound and caused the Celtic to nudge it out of bounds, giving the Lakers the ball and Johnson his stage.
Magic drove through the lane with the clock running out and lifted one of the most famous shots in the history of the NBA.
His junior skyhook soared over the arms of McHale and Robert Parish before finding the bottom of the net and handing the Lakers a 107-106 victory.
After the Game 4 devastation, Bird spoke about how difficult it would be for the Celtics to come back and win the series.
“I liked our chances last night,” Bird said. “If we could have just got that one, it would have been a different series. I wanted to win all three at home and go out for two games because I knew we could win one. But winning two ….”
The Celtics won the final game at home, blowing out the Lakers 123-108 and carrying a 3-2 series deficit on the road.
With the Finals back in Los Angeles, it appeared that Boston was on its way to forcing Game 7, as it took a five-point halftime lead.
Yet Abdul-Jabbar — who had shown up to the game with his head shaven, ready for business — wouldn’t be denied his fifth ring.
The 40-year-old had allowed head coach Pat Riley to make Johnson the focal point of the Lakers’ offense that season, but Game 6 was all about him.
Kareem poured in 32 points as the Lakers’ comeback was sparked by the biggest play of Worthy’s career.
Early in the second half, Worthy tracked down a loose ball and went into an outstretched dive to save it from going out of bounds.
The famous hustle play resulted in a dunk from Magic and a 57-56 lead that the Lakers would never surrender.
After the game, Johnson — who led his team in scoring (26.2 ppg), rebounds (8.0), assists (13.0), and steals (2.3) — was named NBA Finals MVP.
Having defeated the Celtics, the Lakers celebrated with their traditional championship parade, which saw Riley guarantee that the team would repeat next season.
Indeed they fulfilled the promise a year later by beating the Detroit Pistons for the final title of the Showtime era.
