Arguably the best team of all time—in terms of lineups that could go up against any other team in league history—the Boston Celtics cruised to the Finals, losing only two games at home.

Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, Robert Parrish, Dennis Johnson, Danny Ainge and, of course, Bill Walton, piled up an 82-18 (67-15 regular season, 15-3 playoffs) record on the way to beating the Rockets in six games (along with dispatching Jordan's Bulls in three games in the first round).