# 1986–87 Boston Celtics season

The 1986–87 Boston Celtics season was the 41st season of the Boston Celtics in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Celtics entered the season as the defending NBA Champions, having defeated the Houston Rockets in the 1986 NBA Finals in six games, winning their sixteenth NBA championship.
In the playoffs, the Celtics swept the Chicago Bulls in the First Round in three games, defeated the Milwaukee Bucks in the Semi-finals in seven games, and the Detroit Pistons in the conference finals in seven games to reach the NBA Finals for the fifth time in the 1980s. In the Finals, the Celtics faced off against their long time rival, the Los Angeles Lakers, in their third and final matchup in the NBA Finals in the 1980s. The Celtics would lose in six games to the Lakers, and it marked the last time the Celtics made it to the NBA Finals until 2008. Remarkably, the 1987 NBA Finals was the first playoff series for the Celtics in the Bird era in which they did not have the home court advantage, as they had played 24 consecutive series with the home court advantage starting in 1980.

## NBA draft

Thanks to the 1984 trade of Gerald Henderson and the subsequent fall of the Seattle SuperSonics, at the end of the 1985–86 season the Celtics owned not only the best team in the NBA but also the second pick in the 1986 NBA draft. The Celtics drafted small forward Len Bias with the pick and had high hopes for the young Maryland Terrapins star. The hope was that his presence would ensure that the franchise would remain a powerhouse after Bird, McHale, and Parish retired. Unfortunately, Bias died 48 hours after he was drafted, after using cocaine at a party and overdosing.
Unlike the prior year, the Celtics were forced to endure major injuries to several key players including Bill Walton, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish. With a road record of 20–21, the Celtics were a sub-.500 road team for the first time in the Larry Bird era and the first time since the 1978–79 season. However, they continued with the previous season's historic dominance at home with a record of 39–2 at Boston Garden.
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | School/Club Team |
| 1 | 2 | Len Bias | Forward | United States | Maryland |
| 4 | 93 | Tony Benford | N/A | United States | Texas Tech |
| 5 | 116 | Dave Colbert | N/A | United States | Dayton |
| 6 | 139 | Greg Wendt | N/A | United States | Detroit |
| 7 | 162 | Tom Ivey | N/A | United States | Boston University |

## Regular season
### Season standings

| Atlantic Divisionvte | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div |
| y-Boston Celtics | 59 | 23 | .720 | – | 39–2 | 20–21 | 15–9 |
| x-Philadelphia 76ers | 45 | 37 | .549 | 14 | 28–13 | 17–24 | 12–12 |
| x-Washington Bullets | 42 | 40 | .512 | 17 | 27–14 | 15–26 | 13–11 |
| New Jersey Nets | 24 | 58 | .293 | 35 | 19–22 | 5–36 | 12–12 |
| New York Knicks | 24 | 58 | .293 | 35 | 18–23 | 6–35 | 8–16 |
| # | Eastern Conferencevte | Eastern Conferencevte | Eastern Conferencevte | Eastern Conferencevte | Eastern Conferencevte |
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB |
| 1 | c-Boston Celtics | 59 | 23 | .720 | – |
| 2 | y-Atlanta Hawks | 57 | 25 | .695 | 2 |
| 3 | x-Detroit Pistons | 52 | 30 | .634 | 7 |
| 4 | x-Milwaukee Bucks | 50 | 32 | .610 | 9 |
| 5 | x-Philadelphia 76ers | 45 | 37 | .549 | 14 |
| 6 | x-Washington Bullets | 42 | 40 | .512 | 17 |
| 7 | x-Indiana Pacers | 41 | 41 | .500 | 18 |
| 8 | x-Chicago Bulls | 40 | 42 | .488 | 19 |
| 9 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 31 | 51 | .378 | 28 |
| 10 | New Jersey Nets | 24 | 58 | .293 | 35 |
| 11 | New York Knicks | 24 | 58 | .293 | 35 |

### Record vs. opponents

1986-87 NBA Records :
| Team | ATL | BOS | CHI | CLE | DAL | DEN | DET | GSW | HOU | IND | LAC | LAL | MIL | NJN | NYK | PHI | PHO | POR | SAC | SAS | SEA | UTA | WAS |
| Atlanta | – | 3–3 | 4–2 | 4–2 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 5–0 | 5–1 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 5–0 |
| Boston | 3–3 | – | 6–0 | 3–2 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 3–2 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 5–1 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 3–3 | 4–2 | 4–2 | 3–3 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 4–2 |
| Chicago | 2–4 | 0–6 | – | 5–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 3–2 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 4–2 | 3–2 | 4–2 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 3–3 |
| Cleveland | 2–4 | 2–3 | 1–5 | – | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–5 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 3–3 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 1–5 | 4–2 | 4–1 | 2–4 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 2–4 |
| Dallas | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–0 | – | 4–2 | 1–1 | 5–0 | 3–3 | 0–2 | 5–0 | 3–2 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 3–2 | 2–3 | 5–1 | 4–2 | 5–0 | 3–3 | 1–1 |
| Denver | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–4 | – | 0–2 | 4–1 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 2–3 | 0–5 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 3–2 | 3–2 | 2–4 | 5–1 | 2–3 | 2–4 | 1–1 |
| Detroit | 3–3 | 2–3 | 3–3 | 5–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | – | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 5–1 | 6–0 | 5–0 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 3–3 |
| Golden State | 1–1 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 0–5 | 1–4 | 1–1 | – | 4–1 | 0–2 | 6–0 | 2–4 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–5 | 4–2 | 4–1 | 4–1 | 4–2 | 2–3 | 0–2 |
| Houston | 1–1 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 3–3 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 1–4 | – | 2–0 | 4–1 | 1–4 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 3–2 | 2–3 | 5–1 | 5–1 | 1–4 | 3–3 | 1–1 |
| Indiana | 3–3 | 1–5 | 2–3 | 3–3 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 2–0 | 0–2 | – | 2–0 | 0–2 | 2–4 | 5–1 | 3–2 | 2–4 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 4–2 |
| L.A. Clippers | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–5 | 3–2 | 0–2 | 0–6 | 1–4 | 0–2 | – | 0–6 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–5 | 0–6 | 1–4 | 1–4 | 2–4 | 2–3 | 0–2 |
| L.A. Lakers | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–3 | 5–0 | 1–1 | 4–2 | 4–1 | 2–0 | 6–0 | – | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 5–1 | 5–1 | 5–0 | 4–1 | 4–2 | 3–2 | 1–1 |
| Milwaukee | 3–3 | 3–3 | 2–4 | 5–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 4–2 | 2–0 | 1–1 | – | 4–2 | 4–2 | 2–3 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 4–1 |
| New Jersey | 0–5 | 2–4 | 2–3 | 2–4 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–5 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–5 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 2–4 | – | 5–1 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–4 |
| New York | 1–5 | 2–4 | 2–4 | 1–4 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–6 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–3 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 2–4 | 1–5 | – | 3–3 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–4 |
| Philadelphia | 3–3 | 3–3 | 3–3 | 4–2 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 0–5 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 4–2 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 3–2 | 3–3 | 3–3 | – | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 3–3 |
| Phoenix | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–3 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 5–1 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 5–1 | 1–5 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | – | 2–4 | 2–3 | 2–3 | 1–5 | 4–1 | 0–2 |
| Portland | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 2–3 | 2–0 | 2–4 | 3–2 | 2–0 | 6–0 | 1–5 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 4–2 | – | 3–2 | 4–1 | 4–2 | 3–2 | 1–1 |
| Sacramento | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–5 | 4–2 | 1–1 | 1–4 | 1–5 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 0–5 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 3–2 | 2–3 | – | 3–3 | 2–3 | 1–5 | 1–1 |
| San Antonio | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 1–5 | 1–1 | 1–4 | 1–5 | 0–2 | 4–1 | 1–4 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 1–4 | 3–3 | – | 1–4 | 2–4 | 0–2 |
| Seattle | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–5 | 3–2 | 0–2 | 2–4 | 4–1 | 1–1 | 4–2 | 2–4 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 5–1 | 2–4 | 3–2 | 4–1 | – | 3–2 | 1–1 |
| Utah | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 3–3 | 4–2 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–4 | 2–3 | 5–1 | 4–2 | 2–3 | – | 1–1 |
| Washington | 0–5 | 2–4 | 3–3 | 4–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–4 | 4–2 | 4–2 | 3–3 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | — |

### Game log

1986-87 game log :
October
GameDateOpponentScoreLocationRecord
1Fri. Oct. 31Washington Bullets120-102Boston Garden1-0 :
November
GameDateOpponentScoreLocationRecord
2Sat. Nov. 1@ Milwaukee Bucks105-111Milwaukee Arena (MECCA)1-1
3Wed. Nov. 5Indiana Pacers133-102Boston Garden2–1
4Fri. Nov. 7@Washington Bullets88-86Capital Centre3–1
5Tue. Nov. 11@ New Jersey Nets110-114Brendan Byrne Arena3–2
6Wed. Nov. 12Milwaukee Bucks124-116Boston Garden4–2
7Fri. Nov. 14@ Chicago Bulls124-105Chicago Stadium5-2
8Sat. Nov. 15@ Detroit Pistons118-111Pontiac Silverdome6–2
9Wed. Nov. 19Atlanta Hawks111-107Boston Garden7–2
10Fri. Nov. 21Golden State Warriors135-120Boston Garden8–2
11Sat. Nov. 22@ Atlanta Hawks96-97The Omni8–3
12Tue. Nov. 25@ Philadelphia 76ers100-102The Spectrum8–4
13Wed. Nov. 26New York Knicks101-90Boston Garden9–4
14Fri. Nov. 28San Antonio Spurs111-96Boston Garden10–4 :
December
GameDateOpponentScoreLocationRecord
15Tue. Dec. 2Washington Bullets109-117Hartford Civic Center10–5
16Wed. Dec. 3Denver Nuggets119-113Boston Garden11–5
17Fri. Dec. 5Philadelphia 76ers108-106Boston Garden12–5
18Sat. Dec. 6@ Cleveland Cavaliers86-88Richfield Coliseum12–6
19Wed. Dec. 10New Jersey Nets108-98Boston Garden13–6
20Fri. Dec. 12Los Angeles Lakers110-117Boston Garden13–7
21Sat. Dec. 13@ Washington Bullets105-98Capital Centre14–7
22Tue. Dec. 16@ New York Knicks107-96Madison Square Garden15–7
23Wed. Dec. 17Indiana Pacers113-101Boston Garden16–7
24Fri. Dec. 19@ Philadelphia 76ers100-122The Spectrum16–8
25Sat. Dec. 20@ Milwaukee Bucks100-120Milwaukee Arena (MECCA)16–9
26Fri. Dec. 26@ Phoenix Suns122-112Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum17–9
27Sat. Dec. 27@ Los Angeles Clippers114-101L.A. Sports Arena18–9
28Mon. Dec. 29@ Sacramento Kings119-102ARCO Arena I19–9
29Tue. Dec. 30@ Seattle SuperSonics104-102Seattle Center Coliseum20–9 :
January
GameDateOpponentScoreLocationRecord
30Fri. Jan. 2Chicago Bulls113-99Boston Garden21–9
31Wed. Jan. 7Milwaukee Bucks119-92Boston Garden22–9
32Fri. Jan. 9Sacramento Kings109-99Boston Garden23–9
33Sat. Jan. 10@ Detroit Pistons101-118Pontiac Silverdome23–10
34Tue. Jan. 13@ New Jersey Nets123-117Brendan Byrne Arena24–10
35Wed. Jan. 14Dallas Mavericks117-108Boston Garden25–10
36Fri. Jan. 16Cleveland Cavaliers133-128 (OT)Boston Garden26–10
37Sun. Jan. 18Houston Rockets122-99Boston Garden27–10
38Mon. Jan. 19@ New York Knicks109-111Madison Square Garden27–11
39Wed. Jan. 21Indiana Pacers130-100Boston Garden28–11
40Fri. Jan. 23Atlanta Hawks126-106Boston Garden29–11
41Sun. Jan. 25Philadelphia 76ers111-96Boston Garden30–11
42Tue. Jan. 27@ Chicago Bulls105-97Chicago Stadium31–11
43Wed. Jan. 28Chicago Bulls132-103Boston Garden32–11
44Fri. Jan. 30@ Indiana Pacers100-94Market Square Arena33–11 :
February
GameDateOpponentScoreLocationRecord
45Tue. Feb. 3@ Atlanta Hawks123-126 (OT)The Omni33–12
46Wed. Feb. 4Cleveland Cavaliers104-102Boston Garden34–12
47Tue. Feb. 10@ Denver Nuggets119-105McNichols Sports Arena35–12
48Thu. Feb. 12@ Golden State Warriors134-112Oakland Coliseum36–12
49Fri. Feb. 13@ Portland Trail Blazers131-116Memorial Coliseum37–12
50Sun. Feb. 15@ Los Angeles Lakers103-106The Forum37–13
51Mon. Feb. 16@ Utah Jazz89-109Salt Palace37–14
52Wed. Feb. 18@ Dallas Mavericks113-96Reunion Arena38–14
53Thu. Feb. 19@ Houston Rockets99-92The Summit39–14
54Sat. Feb. 21@ San Antonio Spurs121-113HemisFair Arena40–14
55Mon. Feb. 23New Jersey Nets116-103Hartford Civic Center41–14
56Wed. Feb. 25Portland Trail Blazers122-116Boston Garden42–14
57Fri. Feb. 27@ Atlanta Hawks105-115The Omni42–15 :
March
GameDateOpponentScoreLocationRecord
58Sun. Mar. 1Detroit Pistons112-102Boston Garden43–15
59Wed. Mar. 4Utah Jazz123-105Boston Garden44–15
60Fri. Mar. 6Los Angeles Clippers132-111Boston Garden45–15
61Sun. Mar. 8@ Detroit Pistons119-122 (OT)Pontiac Silverdome45-16
62Wed. Mar. 11Phoenix Suns118-109Boston Garden46-16
63Fri. Mar. 13@ Indiana Pacers109-116Market Square Arena46-17
64Sun. Mar. 15New York Knicks113-104Boston Garden47-17
65Tue. Mar. 17@ Milwaukee Bucks115-123Milwaukee Arena (MECCA)47-18
66Wed. Mar. 18Milwaukee Bucks120-102Boston Garden48-18
67Fri. Mar. 20Seattle SuperSonics112-108Boston Garden49-18
68Sun. Mar. 22New Jersey Nets116-104Boston Garden50-18
69Tue. Mar. 24Cleveland Cavaliers111-88Hartford Civic Center51-18
70Thu. Mar. 26@ Washington Bullets103-106Capital Centre51-19
71Fri. Mar. 27@ Chicago Bulls111-106Chicago Stadium52-19
72Sun. Mar. 29Philadelphia 76ers118-100Boston Garden53-19
73Tue. Mar. 31@ New York Knicks120-128Madison Square Garden53-20 :
April
GameDateOpponentScoreLocationRecord
74Wed. Apr. 1Washington Bullets103-86Boston Garden54-20
75Fri. Apr. 3Detroit Pistons119-115 (OT)Boston Garden55-20
76Sun. Apr. 5@ Philadelphia 76ers104-106 (OT)The Spectrum55-21
77Tue. Apr. 7@ Cleveland Cavaliers83-107Richfield Coliseum55-22
78Fri. Apr. 10@ New Jersey Nets108-117Brendan Byrne Arena55-23
79Sun. Apr. 12New York Knicks119-107Boston Garden56-23
80Wed. Apr. 15@ Indiana Pacers108-85Market Square Arena57-23
81Fri. Apr. 17Chicago Bulls108-105Boston Garden58-23
82Sun. Apr. 19Atlanta Hawks118-107Boston Garden59-23 :
1986-87 Schedule :

## Player stats

Note: GP= Games played; REB= Rebounds; AST= Assists; STL = Steals; BLK = Blocks; PTS = Points; AVG = Scoring Average
| Player | GP | REB | AST | STL | BLK | PTS | AVG |
| Larry Bird | 74 | 682 | 566 | 135 | 70 | 2076 | 28.1 |
| Kevin McHale | 77 | 763 | 198 | 38 | 172 | 2008 | 26.1 |
| Robert Parish | 80 | 851 | 173 | 64 | 144 | 1403 | 17.5 |
| Dennis Johnson | 79 | 261 | 594 | 87 | 38 | 1062 | 13.4 |
| Danny Ainge | 71 | 242 | 400 | 101 | 14 | 1053 | 14.8 |
| Jerry Sichting | 78 | 91 | 187 | 40 | 1 | 448 | 5.7 |
| Fred Roberts | 73 | 190 | 62 | 22 | 20 | 402 | 5.5 |
| Darren Daye | 61 | 124 | 75 | 25 | 7 | 236 | 3.9 |
| Sam Vincent | 46 | 27 | 59 | 13 | 1 | 171 | 3.7 |
| Greg Kite | 74 | 169 | 27 | 17 | 46 | 123 | 1.7 |
| Conner Henry | 36 | 27 | 27 | 6 | 1 | 98 | 2.7 |
| Rick Carlisle | 42 | 30 | 35 | 8 | 0 | 80 | 1.9 |
| Bill Walton | 10 | 31 | 9 | 1 | 10 | 28 | 2.8 |
| David Thirdkill | 17 | 19 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 25 | 1.5 |
| Scott Wedman | 6 | 9 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 20 | 3.3 |
| Andre Turner | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1.3 |

## Playoffs

1987 playoff game log :
First round: 3–0 (home: 2–0; road: 1–0)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceSeries
1
April 23
Chicago
W 108–104
Kevin McHale (21)
Robert Parish (11)
Larry Bird (13)
Boston Garden 14,890
1–0
2
April 26
Chicago
W 105–96
Larry Bird (29)
McHale, Parish (10)
Larry Bird (8)
Boston Garden 14,890
2–0
3
April 28
@ Chicago
W 105–94
Larry Bird (32)
Larry Bird (14)
Dennis Johnson (10)
Chicago Stadium 18,122
3–0 :
Conference Semi-finals: 4–3 (home: 3–1; road: 1–2)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceSeries
1
May 5
Milwaukee
W 111–98
Larry Bird (40)
Robert Parish (12)
Bird, Johnson (7)
Boston Garden 14,890
1–0
2
May 6
Milwaukee
W 126–124
Bird, Ainge (30)
Larry Bird (10)
Dennis Johnson (10)
Boston Garden 14,890
2–0
3
May 8
@ Milwaukee
L 121–126 (OT)
Dennis Johnson (32)
Robert Parish (16)
Dennis Johnson (14)
MECCA Arena 11,052
2–1
4
May 10
@ Milwaukee
W 138–137 (2OT)
Larry Bird (42)
Kevin McHale (11)
Dennis Johnson (12)
MECCA Arena 11,052
3–1
5
May 13
Milwaukee
L 124–129
Robert Parish (30)
Robert Parish (16)
Larry Bird (12)
Boston Garden 14,890
3–2
6
May 15
@ Milwaukee
L 111–121
Dennis Johnson (25)
Kevin McHale (16)
Dennis Johnson (14)
MECCA Arena 11,052
3–3
7
May 17
Milwaukee
W 119–113
Larry Bird (31)
Robert Parish (19)
Dennis Johnson (10)
Boston Garden 14,890
4–3 :
Conference finals: 4–3 (home: 4–0; road: 0–3)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceSeries
1
May 19
Detroit
W 104–91
Robert Parish (31)
Larry Bird (16)
Larry Bird (11)
Boston Garden 14,890
1–0
2
May 21
Detroit
W 110–101
Larry Bird (31)
Bird, Parish (9)
Larry Bird (12)
Boston Garden 14,890
2–0
3
May 23
@ Detroit
L 104–122
Sam Vincent (18)
Larry Bird (11)
Dennis Johnson (8)
Pontiac Silverdome 23,525
2–1
4
May 24
@ Detroit
L 119–145
Sam Vincent (18)
Kevin McHale (9)
Sam Vincent (7)
Pontiac Silverdome 27,387
2–2
5
May 26
Detroit
W 108–107
Larry Bird (36)
Larry Bird (12)
Larry Bird (9)
Boston Garden 14,890
3–2
6
May 28
@ Detroit
L 105–113
Larry Bird (35)
Kevin McHale (12)
Dennis Johnson (11)
Pontiac Silverdome 28,383
3–3
7
May 30
Detroit
W 117–114
Larry Bird (37)
Robert Parish (11)
Dennis Johnson (11)
Boston Garden 14,890
4–3 :
NBA Finals: 2–4 (home: 2–1; road: 0–3)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceSeries
1
June 2
@ L.A. Lakers
L 113–126
Larry Bird (32)
Larry Bird (7)
Dennis Johnson (13)
The Forum 17,505
0–1
2
June 4
@ L.A. Lakers
L 122–141
Larry Bird (23)
Robert Parish (14)
Dennis Johnson (9)
The Forum 17,505
0–2
3
June 7
L.A. Lakers
W 109–103
Larry Bird (30)
Larry Bird (12)
Ainge, McHale (5)
Boston Garden 14,890
1–2
4
June 9
L.A. Lakers
L 106–107
Kevin McHale (25)
Kevin McHale (13)
Dennis Johnson (14)
Boston Garden 14,890
1–3
5
June 11
L.A. Lakers
W 123–108
Dennis Johnson (25)
Kevin McHale (14)
Dennis Johnson (11)
Boston Garden 14,890
2–3
6
June 14
@ L.A. Lakers
L 93–106
Dennis Johnson (33)
Johnson, McHale (10)
Danny Ainge (6)
The Forum 17,505
2–4 :
1987 schedule :

## Award winners

* Larry Bird, All-NBA First Team
* Kevin McHale, All-NBA First Team
* Kevin McHale, All-NBA Defensive First Team