Memorial Day Massacre

The Celtics crushed the Lakers in Game 1 of the 1985 NBA Finals, it was dubbed 'The Memorial Day Massacre'.

[@grindhardlio7814]

Who’s watching after hearing the commentator relate this to the Lakers blowing out the heat

[@michaelramos771]

Me😂

[@bonganimkhwanazi2081]

LOL when going 4/4 3PT FG is incredible

[@joshDifferent25]

After Celtics blew out the Heat

[@Torgo1969]

Good times, I remember the Bird-Magic rivalry fondly. Great games and memories.

[@dannymarshburn2807]

NBA has never seen a better era.

[@shelbysmitherman329]

the greatest Era for the NBA.

[@twirajuda]

Agreed, the rivalry provided worthwhile drama. Whole lot better than the Michael Jordan cult of personality that came after

[@kameronmeyers3612]

PEOPLE FORGET MAGIC BEAT LARRY 3 OUT OF 4 WHEN IT COUNTED 1979 85 87

[@kentjax3622]

148 to 114 Celtics win over Lakers, what a game. It seems like yesterday when I was watching this game. Glory days indeed.

[@kennethrobinson6738]

Those were some great times back in the 80s. Hated the Celtics. HATED them rascals with a passion. But that Lakers/Celtics Finals. Or the Sixers/Celtics ECFs were always fun games to watch and enjoy. You could feel the intensity on your TV set! I can just imagine being in one of those stadiums during game time.

[@deirdre108]

I watched the game televised then and was most impressed with Parish's play..

[@ogdocvato]

K.C. Jones was an assistant coach for the 1972 Laker championship team. Celtic legend and University of Southern Cal. alum Bill Sharman was the head coach of the 1972 Lakers.

[@Mrd9960]

Lol just goes to show, the Lakers couldn't win a title back then, without the help of the Celtics.😂😂😂

[@paulavery1686]

If only the Birdman didn't hurt his back which took away 1/3 of his career. My o My the possibilities.

[@postaltraining]

bird's back was okay in 85. it was the offseason in 86 when it started to go bad. for 1985, bird got into a fistfight outside of a bar in boston during the philly series. he was never the same as it is widely thought broken bones / other injury in his hand from punching some fat head (but bird was a real turd for flushing the finals by getting into the fight) in a bar fight. it's a pretty notable drop off. the incident was after game 6 in the philly eastern finals series. from there on out, bird shot barely over 40% and was not bird-like

[@Colstonewall]

No. Bird hurt his back in '85 working on his driveway. It was going bad bad long before '86.

[@postaltraining]

Chris Kavanagh yes, bird's back problem was a congenital issue- sounded like some sort of stenosis. however, if you look at bird after game 4 of the philly eastern finals- he was not bird. not because of the back, because of a mysterious-onset "hand injury" that was buried by the celts and media as "part of the game" it wasn't- it was part of a brawl bird got in outside of a bar in boston the night after game 4 or 5 vs. philly. from there on out through the lakers series, bird barely shot 40% from the field- check my facts on basketbal-reference.com web site for the shooting %ages and there is a boston globe article that has come out all these years later (some time in the interim) about the bar fight that costs the celts a three-peat

[@irishgrl]

@@postaltraining He hurt it in 85 shoveling gravel for his moms driveway!!! It was never the same. This was ON TOP OF the congenital issue with the narrow spinal cord opening! As for the bar fight incident, it was reported by Dan Shaughnessy at the time, & retold in his latest book.

[@postaltraining]

@@irishgrl yep, the bar fight was for real. bird must have spinal stenosis. it's awful. my wife has it at the top and bottom of her spine. it's horrific amounts of pain, no real solutions.

[@tony195869]

I remember that day I bet the lakers to win the nba championship that year and I had a huge headache during and after the game... the lakers went on to beat the Celtics in 6 games

[@jjs777fzr]

Yeah and here’s the back story on why the Celtics lost. I work on State st in Boston. And just down Merchants Row where a hole in the wall tavern called Chelseas had two patrons Bird and Buckner drinking it up as they often did.This was before the playoffs. There was a bar fight and one of the patrons severely injured Bird’s already mangled finger. There’s been devout Celtics fans that went back and looked at Bird’s shooting percentage before and after that altercation. Bird’s shooting was significantly impacted by that incident. The perpetrators that started the fight ended up getting an out of court settlement and the case was marked confidential to protect the so called victims. I have no doubt the Celtics would have won the 84-85 season vs the Lakers and would of course we know what happened in 85-86 with the C’s win. That would have been the repeat for the Celtics we all thought was deserved. Ayyyy....The Lakers were good in 84-85 but had the finger not get injured I really think we would have won. But it is what it is. Hated Magic all those years but no denying Bird and Magic changed the face of the game throughout the 80’s. If you ever get the chance to catch the interview with Bird, Magic and Letterman it is plain obvious the connection these two have. All these years later...Magic you are truly one of the greats on and off the court.

[@NameCallingIsWeak]

@@jjs777fzr The Celtics were LEGENDARY for making sure fire alarms were pulled in the Laker's hotel ... so ... what the hell is Larry Bird doing in a BAR before the PLAYOFFS ?? Also, why didn't he HIRE someone to pave his mother's driveway?? Bird is better than magic, but he made his choices.

[@mrsinister8943]

I bet it was great being a basketball fan back in these days. I was 6 or 7 at this time and didnt start watching until 1990 and seeing the Jordan era begin.

[@eeerpud]

As much I hated the Celtics back then, I must say they had the most passionate and loudest fans of that era.

[@tegothecat1519]

+eeerpud they still do

[@Italianoboy1gmail]

eeerpud thanks we know!!!!!!🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🐘🐼🐬🐻🐳🐕🐅🐄🐖

[@liammessano8962]

Boston fans suck

[@peterouellette4803]

SO MUCH HATRED!... Yet so much respect as well. K.C. Jones was right on with his post game comments. Pat was close but he sold his team one game short (or long?!) Love watching all these highlights! Thanks

[@richsalzer2556]

Scott Wedman alltime mark of 11 for 11 shooting v Lakers

[@antonious4132]

Who’s hear because of the Lakers vs Miami FINALS game 6 blowout ????

[@MrOrganicdude]

KC Jones was spot on with his comments about LA

[@AndresRuiz-ej4nt]

Who’s here after Mike Breen mentioned this on Miami vs Boston ECF Game 3

[@edwardbrito4010]

McHale played on fractured foot Magic smartly isolated him in baby skyhook. You can say Bird was defeated just played with an injured team. Bird was basically injured this most games after.

[@alzinn8231]

Nzinn73 That's 87 finals. Memorial day massacre is 85 finals.

[@lenpey]

That was 2 years later.

[@M.AlexanderZagorski-vg2ml]

I had goosebumps watching this phenomenal footage!

[@Gregory-sm9pf]

I so vividly remember this game, Celtics put it in cruise control from the start til the end, absolutely demolished the Lakers but, after the game it just gave me a feeling of uneasiness, it was as if the Lakers lost this game on purpose (of course they didn't) and sure enough, my gut feeling was right, what great basketball by these two teams, loved it, let's bring it all back baby!

[@fugerep]

If Bird hadn't had the elbow injury I think the Celtics take them in 7 again.

[@spitshinetommy3721]

+fugerep 80s Celtics fans love their "ifs", don't they?

[@erwin021777]

+Spitshine Tommy Lakers would have beaten the bulls "IF" James worthy wasn't injured. yes injuries do affect the game of a teams best player and their team

[@GatheringDream]

+SillyLoony Bastard W

[@Kickingit06]

This would've set the Celtics up for a back-to-back championship, but Stern rigged it so Game 5 was in LA for the Lakers, who had the worse record.

[@lenpey]

Grapes still sour after all these years, eh? Lakers won the title in Boston game 6.

[@rowdycmoore]

The "Mother's Day Massacre" of 2011 was so much sweeter, because that one eliminated the Lakers. They completely fell apart, with Bynum AND Odom getting tossed. Oh, and of course, the team that beat them, the Mavericks, went on to win the championship. MFFL

[@muckerwood]

+rowdycmoore Amen

[@spitshinetommy3721]

+rowdycmoore Do you root for every team that plays the Lakers? Pansy

[@jamalgunter1451]

+Bestandgr8est LOL!!!! well said. Bynum is a piece of crap.

[@anthonyromero9637]

how many championships hAve the Mavs won?

[@DavidChen322]

Maybe the Celts should've won by fewer points. This game really inspired Kareem to his finals MVP series.

[@Jondsmusic]

Now this is the type of ass kicking I love! Beat Hell LA!

[@RogerPeet]

If it wasn't for my 'trick-knee', we will never know.

[@TheYeti308]

Oh I remember this game . !

[@charisma7312]

Stop it Skip

[@StFidjnr]

4:30 game 1 of the 1958 NBA World championship series aka

[@paulsonj72]

reltiet-It wasn't played on Memorial Day. It was played the Sunday AFTER memorial day/The 1st 3 games of the NBA Finals that year went Sunday(Game 1 BEFORE Memorial Day( Game 2 Thursday Night after Memorial Day and Game 3 was played the Sunday AFTER Memorial Day. And the reason for the break between games 1 and 2 was that May Sweeps was still going on at the time but they ended BEFORE Game 2. Even in those days CBS didn't want to interrupt regular programming(and preempt local stations late news which is where sweeps are MUCH more valuable) for Basketball.

[@sarnow76]

John Paulson May 27th 1985 was Memorial Day.

[@leodurocher5454]

John Paulson it was played on a Monday you know it all ....I loved it and remember it well....bird had a bad elbow in 85

[@reltiet]

Why wasn't the Lakers 137-104 victory over the Celtics in game 3 of the 1984 finals not dubbed 'Memorial Day Massacre'?

[@brandonterzic]

because nobody thought to do it.

[@richsalzer2556]

Pihleez...keep it real Holmes ..

[@Mrd9960]

That was on memorial day? Wow, totally forgot what day that was.

[@scottodonnell7121]

@@Mrd9960 it was on a Sunday.

[@wobblertv8083]

Think this result motivated the lakers to another level .Might have been different if this was game 3 .

[@robinrobine8100]

Or if the Celtics were healthy. 2:42

[@MrEfkius]

Larry Bird!!!!!!!!!

[@thebestsundayschooldropout8083]

Who’s here after the Lakers vs Suns game 5 blowout?

[@master-kq3nw]

148 114 celtics play fantastic this game big rivals in 8os bird and magic

[@ruchpat1]

Magic Johnson 5 Championships and an NCAA Men’s Division One College Basketball with my Beloved Michigan State University Spartans beating Larry Bird , I will take over Larry Legends cute 3 championships. In all honesty I respect in all aspects all the contributions that Magic Johnston and Larry Bird have contributed to basketball and it is nothing but respect from me.

[@samslick9000]

3:46 That's nothin' today

[@seanrolle6860]

Bird

[@Alphasports576]

Larry Bird injury probably caused Boston

[@mitchmitchell1803]

80s NBA was physical basketball. I remember this game well as I was a huge Celtic fan. Wedman & Ainge lit it up from the outside and Parrish made Kareem look old. LA went on to win the series but this game was all Boston and I left a holiday cookout to watch it. The only downer that day was some pain from my broken foot, a foot I broke a few days earlier playing......basketball.

[@saahithvathalurin2942]

Heat bout to do this

[@nickcurran3105]

Here's what I want to know: if we all think that guys like Magic, Kareem, Worthy, Byron Scott, Dennis Johnson, and Parish could play in today's game, why couldn't guys like Bird, McHale, Wedman, and Ainge who played successfully then be successful today? If we think they could, then where are their modern equivalents? And don't give me Luka and the other Europeans.

[@franagustin3094]

Because men like Bird are "fascists" for progressive dummies, which is so stupid

[@emmanuelmoses7249]

I think Larry Bird is actually more like Jokic than Luka.. A postup guy, stretches the floor, Playmaker. But obviously he wouldn't be as MUCH of a mismatch because there's tons of 6'6-6'10 defenders to throw at Bird. I think Bird would be elite but would he be better than a Durant? I highly doubt it. Same goes for Magic Johnson.

[@franagustin3094]

@@emmanuelmoses7249 Yeah he would be better than Durant cause he would make many 3s

[@noelharris5488]

@@emmanuelmoses7249 Today's game would be tailor made for Bird. All the 3s they take.Look at any boxscore.Alotta times teams take more 3s than 2s

[@emmanuelmoses7249]

@@noelharris5488 I said Bird would be great. I think his playmaking & shot making would fit perfectly. I don't think he'd be better than A Kd or a LeBron. But that's not a knock on him at all. The game always evolves. Saying he could thrive in today's game 40 years after his prime is a huge compliment

[@SVFILMSPRODUCTION]

UNDISPUTED, Skip Bayless and Shannon Sharpe get me here.

[@thefrase7884]

Give the Lakers credit. The pretty much controlled the series after this.

[@keithlauderjr1691]

Now that's a butt whipping. Grew up in Newport RI and bleed Celtic Green.

[@pinkglove72]

This was the era of real men, real basketball players, now is the era of clowns.

[@Wis_Dom]

+Inster You can't stop the TRUTH, kid. That's why a three year old comment bothers you so.

[@joshuasutton983]

What the hell is a"real" basketball player? LMAO

[@dacooooo]

Nostalgia is a drug

[@miyojewoltsnasonth2159]

@MAN UTD The only fuck I give about soccer is being around Americans and correcting them when they say "soccer." But the game itself? I don't give a fuck. More importantly, unless you're a troll, drunk, or both, everybody watching this video came to see basketball, and possibly to argue about basketball. Even if they care about soccer, nobody came here to read anything about soccer. Grow up. And spend your energy on things people give a fuck about.

[@unappealingundesirable2826]

I noticed the White police officer slapping hands with the White players, but not the Black players, pre game.

[@daniel79tj]

More like black players ignored him

[@mr.sinjin-smyth]

Another of those comments that means ... white bad and it's all them white folks' fault. Can't just let that issue go can you?

[@unappealingundesirable2826]

@@mr.sinjin-smyth Exactly, Mr. Sinjin-Smyth. I was born in Seattle in 1973, where I grew up. Sonics and Blazers fan. Japanese-American. And, because I'm a Blazers fan (Boston KILLS Portland EVERY year), and because I'm Japanese-American, I HATE the Boston Celtics!! If I were born in Boston, or White, I would LOVE the Celtics and LOVE Larry Bird. I hate Larry Bird, Dan Majerle, Ben Rethlesbarger, Phillip Rivers, Matt Harpring, Tom Brady, Justin Verlander, Alex Bregman, Danielle Lawrie, Brett Lawrie, AJ Hinch, and Bill Belichick. Growing up, I NEVER had the ability to hide behind a computer screen, and freely say my feelings about things like White Boston. And, there IS such a thing as "White Boston." AND, when I was 11, my father's friend from Boston came to Seattle to visit. We had a picnic together. The son of that friend, in 1984, inadvertently made me step into the pond with my shoes on. I hated that son, and just a few days later, I saw the Sonics playing at Boston on TV, I saw Larry Bird on TV, and I HATED the Celtics ever since! AND to top it off: In 1984 when I was 11, I looked at the "list of NBA champions," and I see Boston Boston Boston Boston, EIGHT times in a row! Ever since then, I saw the Celtics and "championship hogs."

[@panama8009]

That's why Bill Russell always outside basketball always had disdain for Boston. Racist ass city always.

[@lmet6174]

anyone notice the cop who high fives the white players and dodges the black player hands.??

[@93Jubilee]

oh my god, you're right.

[@rwmartinez1262]

The black players didn't want to shake the cops hand.

[@angrymobsters1599]

He touched ML and DJS hand. Cornbread looked away and avoided the handshake.

[@daniel79tj]

he tried to handshake the first 2 and was ignored

[@mr.sinjin-smyth]

Another of those comments that means ... white bad and it's all them white folks' fault. Can't just let that issue go can you?

[@colttodd522]

oh goodness . the cop didn't shake the black player fellas hands.

[@unappealingundesirable2826]

I was born in Seattle in 1973, where I grew up. Sonics and Blazers fan. Japanese-American. I also noticed the Boston cop low fiving the White players, but not the Black players!

[@mr.sinjin-smyth]

Another of those comments that means ... white bad and it's all them white folks' fault. Can't just let that issue go can you?

[@JohnnyReb1976]

As a Celtic fan, kudos to Lakers for coming back from this.

[@heitorantunescosta4411]

1:06 Racism

[@mr.sinjin-smyth]

Another of those comments that means ... white bad and it's all them white folks' fault. Can't just let that issue go can you?

[@bvalenz]

@@mr.sinjin-smyth he pointed out the👮‍♀️ shook hands w/2 ☘️ white guys but not the 2 ☘️ black guys

[@tnyalvarez]

Funny how the cop in the beginning doesn’t give five to any of the Celtics black players...in all honesty that’s sad.

[@anthonyparco1548]

Tony Alvarez yes he did

[@unappealingundesirable2826]

I was born in 1973 in Seattle, where I grew up. Sonics and Blazers fan. Japanese-American. And I noticed that too!!

[@daniel79tj]

he did with the first 2 and was ignored, after that only the white players showed intention to shake his hand

[@mr.sinjin-smyth]

Another of those comments that means ... white bad and it's all them white folks' fault. Can't just let that issue go can you?

[@user-wy7pc5mu2q]

T Wolves beat the champion Nuggets by 45 last night in Game 6