Today in the Zone, I decided to unveil a new feature to the Player Profiles section. Now, the profiles will include recaps of past NBA Finals! The first one is a profile of one of the best NBA Finals of all time. It is the 1984 Finals between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics.

In the NBA, one of the greatest team rivalries is between the L.A. Lakers and the Boston Celtics. The two legendary teams met seven times in the Finals between 1959 and 1969. However, it was one of the most onesided rivalries; Boston won all seven Finals, three times in the deciding game 7. After the drafting of superstars Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, the anticipation of a renewed Lakers/Celtics rivalry increased. But the matchup never happened in their first four years; though the teams won three of the titles awarded during that span, none were won against each other. Then, during the 1983-84 season, things were changed.

The Celtics, coming off getting swept in 1983 by the Milwaukee Bucks, thrived after K.C. Jones replaced Bill Fitch as coach. They won 62 games, outpacing the defending champion 76ers by ten games in the Atlantic Division. Larry Bird enjoyed his first MVP season, averaging 24.2 PPG, 10.1 RPG and 6.6 APG. Meanwhile, the Lakers went 54-28 to claim the West's best record, as Johnson averaged 17.6 PPG and 13.1 APG (leading the league in assists) and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar passed Wilt Chamberlain as the NBA's all-time leading scorer. The road to the Finals wouldn't be easy for either team; the playoffs were expanded from ten teams to sixteen, and even the division champs would play the first round. The winning team would have to win 15 games for the first time in NBA history, but that wouldn't stop L.A. or Boston.

The Lakers roared through the Western Conference playoffs, sweeping the Kansas City Kings 3-0, whipping the Dallas Mavericks 4-1, and outlasting the Phoenix Suns 4-2 to win their third straight Western Conference final. The Celtics beat the Washington Bullets 3-1, survived a grueling seven game series with the New York Knicks (each team won their games on the home floor), and gained a measure of revenge by stomping the Bucks 4-1 to regain the Eastern Conference throne. Finally, the league had a Lakers/Celtics, Magic/Bird Final, and anticipation ran high.

Before game 1 of the series, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar complained of migraine headaches, but when gametime rolled around, he gave Boston fits, scoring 23 points in the first half and helping L.A. to a 64-52 lead. Though Boston closed the gap to 92-88 by the fourth quarter, L.A. never let up, eventually winning 115-109. Abdul-Jabbar scored 32 points to lead all scorers, while Kevin McHale scored 25 to lead Boston. Game two started with the Celtics getting off to a 37-26 1st quarter lead, but behind strong performances by James Worthy (who finished with a game high 29 points) and Jamaal Wilkes, the Lakers closed it to 62-59 at the half. The Lakers eventually took the lead late in the game 113-111, and after McHale missed two free throws, the Lakers called time. Needing only to dribble out the clock, Worthy instead threw the ball away to Gerald Henderson, whose layup tied the game. Then, Magic forgot the time on the clock, and the Lakers never got a chance to win in regulation. Boston took the lead for good on a Scott Wedman jumper, and won 124-121 to even the series.

Game 3 never was as close as game 2; after Boston took a brief 40-35 lead in the second quarter, L.A. took the lead by eleven at the half, then scored a Finals record 47 points in the third, leading by 25 after the period, and rolling 137-104 to take a 2-1 lead. Abdul-Jabbar led a balanced attack with 24 points, and Johnson set a Finals record with 21 assists. Although Bird scored 30 to lead the Celtics, he fumed afterwards, saying to reporters that "we (the Celtics) played like a bunch of women tonight" and calling himself and his team "sissies". The message was sent, and game 4 bore the fruit of his diatribe. Initially, the game was similar to game 3; L.A. led 68-58 after two periods, and were ahead 76-70 when the turning point (in many people's minds) occured; McHale clothselined Kurt Rambis, nearly inciting a brawl, and shortly thereafter, Bird and Abdul-Jabbar had bitter words. The team exchanged the lead until L.A. led 113-108 with less than a minute remaining. It was at that point that Abdul-Jabbar fouled out. The Lakers lost the lead, and nearly the game in regulation, when Robert Parish stole a bad pass from Magic, but the Celtics didn't convert, forcing another overtime game. In the late moments, Magic made another mistake, missing two free throws. Worthy then missed another pair with ten seconds remaining. A Bird jumper, two Dennis Johnson free throws, and an M.L. Carr dunk helped Boston win 129-125. The series had now turned in the Celtics' favor.

Game 5 saw both team feel the heat... literally. The temperature at courtside was 97 degrees at tipoff. Bird shook it off, hitting 15 of 20 attempts, scoring 34 points, and grabbing 17 rebounds, and the Lakers never were in the game, as many of their players were succumbing to the heat by using oxygen tanks. The Celtics rolled past the Lakers 121-103 for a 3-2 series lead. With their season on the line, L.A. bounced back in game 6, as Abdul-Jabbar recovered from another migraine to lead all scorer with 30 points and also had 10 boards. The Lakers even decided to retaliate with the physical Celtics; Worthy pushed Cedric Maxwell into the basket support, causing another near fight. The Lakers won the game 119-108, but even their coach, Pat Riley, thought they weren't in the right frame of mind as the Finals went seven game for the first time since 1978.

Game 7 was defined by Maxwell, who told his team before the game "Get on my back fellas, and I'll take us home". Maxwell scored 11 points from the free throw line as he attacked the lane frequently. Boston led by as much as 11 points before taking a 58-52 halftime lead. L.A. led briefly 72-71 before Boston responded with a 20-6 run to lead 90-78 after three. L.A. made one last run late in the fourth; with Boston ahead 105-97, L.A. scored five straight to cut the lead to three. When they stopped the Celtics the next possession, Magic made one more critical mistake, losing the ball to Dennis Johnson, who made two free throws that put the game out of reach. The Celtics won 111-102 to win the series 4-3 and remain undefeated against the Lakers in the Finals. Bird was named Finals MVP, and he finally got his revenge against Magic, though he said in the postgame celebration that he had already gotten over that. It was the Celtics' fifteenth NBA title.

Series Leaders: Points per game
Lakers: Abdul-Jabbar, 26.6 PPG; Worthy, 22.1 PPG; E. Johnson, 18.1 PPG
Celtics: Bird, 27.4 PPG; D. Johnson, 17.6 PPG; Parish, 15.4 PPG

Series Leaders: Rebound per game
Lakers: E. Johnson, 7.7 RPG; Abdul-Jabbar, 7.4 RPG; Rambis, 6.4 RPG
Celtics: Bird, 14.0 RPG; Parish, 11.4 RPG; McHale, 5.9 RPG

Series Leaders: Assists per game
Lakers: E. Johnson, 13.6 APG; Michael Cooper, 5.3 APG; Abdul-Jabbar, 4.4 APG
Celtics: D. Johnson, 4.7 APG; Henderson, 4.0 APG; Bird, 3.6 APG