The Celtics and the Philadelphia 76ers owned a rivalry dating to the days when Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain battled relentlessly in the paint. Erving arrived in 1976 and helped the 76ers beat Boston in seven games in the Eastern Conference semifinals in his first season. Philly took out the Celtics in five games in 1980, Bird’s rookie season.
The following two seasons, they reinvigorated the rivalry. The Eastern Conference finals went seven games both times, with Boston advancing in 1981 and Philadelphia moving on in ’82.
Seeing each other frequently in the regular season as divisional foes only served to spice matters more. Three separate fights broke out in a Sixers-Celtics regular-season game the previous year. Thus, energy was understandably high when rivals with unblemished records ten days into the new season got together in Boston.
On November 9, 1984, the Boston Celtics (4-0) hosted the Philadelphia 76ers (5-0) at the Boston Garden. It was expected to be a great battle between two undefeated teams, with Larry Bird and Julius Erving going head-to-head.
Dick Bavetta, the lone official, had a difficult job after his partner, unfortunately, broke his leg when Denise Johnson accidentally ran into him along the baseline under the Boston basket.
Late in the third quarter, Bavetta whistled Bird for an offensive foul for appearing to throw an elbow at Erving. As Erving and Bird were returning to the court, what happened next was one of the most infamous brawls in the history of the NBA.
Though many understandably assumed that frustration triggered the fight. Dick Bavetta said in an interview it was Larry’s trash-talking. “As every shot went in that Larry took, he kept saying to Erving, ‘Aren’t you gonna guard me?'”
However, Erving explained many years later that he tried to stop Bird from going after the referee who had called the foul.
“He didn’t like the call, so he was mad at the referee. And he came down the court and was kind of like stomping. He was in front of his bench, and it looked like a moment in which he was going to take a swing. So I extended my arm to hold him back, and I pushed him in the chest, my hand slid up, got to his neck, and he reached for my neck… Next thing I know, it’s a melee.”
Erving said of alleged hard feelings, “It was over right after it happened. We did a Converse commercial the next day in Boston. People try to keep it alive like it should be a big thing, but it’s not.”
When Larry was asked about the incident, he said, “I fight with my brothers all the time, and I still love them.”
To this day, fans think of it as honest-to-goodness bad blood between Bird and Erving. But, the guy most bitter about the entire affair is Charles Barkley.
“I won’t ever forgive the NBA for fining me,” he told NBC Sports. “They fined me because they said I was holding Larry Bird so Dr. J could hit him. I was trying to break the fight up. They owe me money to this day.”
Erving and Bird were ejected from the Game. Dr. J exited with six points, three rebounds, and five assists; while larry had posted 42 points, seven rebounds, and three assists in 30 minutes.
Scotty Stirling, the league’s vice president of operations, levied $30,500 in fines to the 18 people involved in the melee that emptied both benches.
Julius Erving and Larry Bird were fined $7,500 each. In a letter notifying Bird of the fine, Stirling described the Celtic forward as “clearly the aggressor and the instigator of the melee.”
To Erving, Stirling wrote, “While recognizing that Bird was the aggressor and instigator, your continuation of the incident by punching Bird escalated an already serious situation.”
Stirling also warned both players that any further incident of this nature “will result in even more serious penalties, including suspension.”
Moses Malone, the 76ers’ massive center, joined the fight as Erving and Bird continued to swing. Malone then scuffled briefly with M. L. Carr, the Celtic swingman. Both Malone and Carr were fined $3,000.
Charles Barkley was fined $1,000, and six other 76ers – Marc Iavaroni, Clemon Johnson, Bobby Jones, Clint Richardson, Sedale Threatt, and Sam Williams – were fined the mandatory $500 each for leaving the bench.
Danny Ainge, Rich Carlisle, Carlos Clark, Dennis Johnson, Greg Kite, and Scott Wedman of the Celtics were also fined $500 each for leaving the bench.
Billy Cunningham, coach of Philadelphia, was assessed $2,500. Stirling said he had fined Cunningham for his part in the fight and his postgame quotes, which Stirling called “inflammatory.”
