Former Celtics star center, Robert Parish, was recently asked which team would win in a clash between the 2024 Champion "Green" and the 1986 roster. "The Chief" answered that the 1986 crew would prevail because nobody had an answer for Bill Walton.
I love the present Celtics team, but the 85-86 group may be the best NBA crew ever assembled. The 80s group were at their peak, and Bill Walton had an injury-free season, walking away with the 6th-Man-of-the-Year award. Bill was a luxury for a team so stacked.
Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, Parish, Dennis Johnson and Danny Ainge were generally the starters, and Walton, Scott Wedman and Jerry Sichting came off the bench. Before coming to Boston, Walton had won many awards, including MVP and Finals MVP. Wedman had been a two-time All-Star prior to becoming a Celtic. That was quite a bench.
The 80s Celtics had it all - no weaknesses. It started with size. They were long in the front court, and when Coach K C Jones was asked about negative match-up issues, he answered that opponents would have to match up with Boston's length. That crew led by Bird had size, shooting, defense, rebounding, passing and the will to win.
I have watched and followed the Boston Celtics starting in 1960. The Bill Russell-led team also had the likes of Sam Jones, K C Jones, John Havlicek, Larry Siegfried and Don Nelson, but the Bird-led crew most-likely would have prevailed had they met. In the 70s, Dave Cowens, Havlicek (again) and JoJo White ran opponents off the court but that group would have trouble dealing with the 80s roster.
Now to the present "Green". They are fun to watch - the Jays are super-skilled - and the supporting cast seems to always play beyond what was expected. But they are still a work in progress, and another Title or two could start to prove just how good they are.
That's my favourite lineup of all time 85/86. Lots of good memories listening to Johnny Most on my portable radio under the covers when I was supposed to be asleep as a kid.
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