After defeating the Washington Bullets in four games in the 1984 Eastern Conference First Round, the Celtics faced the New York Knicks in the playoffs for the first time in 10 years.
The physical semifinals went seven games, but Boston came out on top.
After getting past the Atlanta Hawks in the other 1984 Eastern Conference First Round and then the New Jersey Nets in the Semifinals, the rematch between the Milwaukee Bucks and Boston Celtics was set with a trip to the NBA Finals on the line.
The Celtics took revenge on the Milwaukee Bucks with a five-game romp after being swapped by Milwaukee the previous year in the 1983 Eastern Conference Semifinals.
The Celtics came out looking like a team on a mission as they went on to win the series’ first three games by a combined 47 points.
Although the Bucks were able to snag a 122-113 win over the Celtics in Game 4, they were officially sent home after being edged out by the Celtics in Game 5 in the Boston Garden.
As potent as the Bucks were at the top of their roster, they had no answer for that year’s Most Valuable Player, Larry Bird, who finished with 27.4 points, ten rebounds, and 6.4 assists across his five games in the duel.
This would also mark the last appearances with the Bucks for all three of Marques Johnson, Junior Bridgeman, and Harvey Catchings, who were a part of the six-player trade package between both the Bucks and the Los Angeles Clippers that Don Nelson engineered before the start of the 1984-85 season.
