The Boston Celtics defeated the Houston Rockets four games to two in the best-of-seven NBA Finals series to conclude the 1985-86 NBA season. The victory gave Boston its league-record 16th NBA Championship, but it would be the last for the Celtics until 2008.

The Rockets were making their second Finals appearance in franchise history, having lost to the Celtics in 1981.

Larry Bird won NBA Finals MVP honors, the second time in his career he earned the award. At the time, he was just the fourth player to win the award multiple times, joining Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson and Willis Reed.

The Celtics had home-court advantage for the Finals. Boston swept the two regular-season meetings between the teams in 1985-86.

Team	Rockets	Celtics
Regular Season	51-31, 1st in Midwest Division	67-15, 1st in Atlantic Division
First Round	Def. (7) Sacramento Kings, 3-0	Def. (8) Chicago Bulls, 3-0
Conference Semifinals	Def. (3) Denver Nuggets, 4-2	Def. (4) Atlanta Hawks, 4-1
Conference Finals	Def. (1) Los Angeles Lakers, 4-1	Def. (2) Milwaukee Bucks, 4-0

The Rockets' twin towers, Ralph Sampson and Hakeem Olajuwon, both spent significant time on the bench in foul trouble, allowing the Celtics to take control of the game. Sampson picked up three fouls in the first 4:45 of the game, and the Celtics led by six points after the first quarter. Olajuwon scored 25 points in the first half to keep the Rockets close but picked up his fourth and fifth fouls in a 33-second span in the third quarter, forcing him to the bench. Without Olajuwon, the Rockets couldn't muster up any attack, and Boston ended the third quarter on a 27-11 run to take an insurmountable lead in the game and a 1-0 lead in the series.

The Celtics' "Big Three" of Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish combined for 65 points, with Bird adding eight rebounds and 13 assists. Dennis Johnson, one of the three former Finals MVPs in the Celtics' lineup, also flirted with a triple-double, finishing with 19 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists. Olajuwon finished with 33 points, and Rodney McCray had 20 for Houston. Sampson managed just two points on 1-of-13 shooting -- including 1-of-10 in the first half.

The Celtics outscored the Rockets 63-39 over the second and third quarters to turn a close game into a blowout, taking a 2-0 series lead. The Celtics used frequent double-team pressure to contain Hakeem Olajuwon, who didn't attempt a shot for the first six minutes of the game. Boston led by as many as 27 points late in the game before emptying the bench.

Larry Bird finished with 31 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, while Kevin McHale chipped in 25 points. Olajuwon finished with 21 points on 8-of-16 shooting, and Ralph Sampson bounced back from his dismal Game 1 performance to post 18 points in Game 2.

Rodney McCray scored 10 of his 12 points in the first quarter to give the Rockets a four-point lead. Boston took over in the third quarter, taking a nine-point lead with a 17-3 run, led by Kevin McHale's 11 points. Down by eight points with three minutes left, the Rockets went on a 9-0 run to take a 103-102 lead. Danny Ainge responded by making a jumper to put the Celtics ahead, but on the other end, a Mitchell Wiggins tip-in put the Rockets up for good, as Boston would not score again.

Ralph Sampson had his biggest game of the series, finishing with 24 points and 22 rebounds. All five Rockets starters scored in double figures. Robert Reid had 19 points and helped shut down Larry Bird in the second half. Bird had 25 points but made just three of his last 12 shots from the field after Rockets coach Bill Fitch put Reid on Bird. Bird had 15 rebounds and 11 assists. McHale led the Celtics with 28 points.

The game was tight throughout, with 19 lead changes and 13 ties. Tied at 101 with two minutes left, Larry Bird made a 3-pointer (his only one of the game) to give Boston a three-point cushion. The Rockets cut it to a one-point lead on a Rodney McCray follow, but Bill Walton slammed home an offensive rebound on the ensuing possession for the game's final points, giving Boston a 3-1 series lead.

The Celtics had five players in double figures, led by Robert Parish's 22 points and 10 rebounds. Larry Bird flirted with a triple-double for the fourth consecutive game, finishing with 21 points, nine rebounds and 10 assists. Ralph Sampson led the Rockets with 25 points. Hakeem Olajuwon added 20 points and 14 rebounds.

The Rockets staved off elimination in a game remembered for a large-scale brawl in the second quarter. With 9:35 left in the second quarter and the Rockets clinging to a one-point lead, Ralph Sampson and Jerry Sichting got tangled up and began fighting. Both benches emptied during the ensuing melee. Dennis Johnson ended up with a bloody eye, and Bill Walton tackled Sampson. Both Sampson -- who had 12 points in 14 minutes -- and Sichting were ejected. The fight seemed to spark the Rockets, who went on a 20-8 run to take control of the game. Houston led by 21 points at the end of the third quarter and cruised to a 15-point victory.

Hakeem Olajuwon led the Rockets with 32 points and 14 rebounds, and matched Walton's Finals record with eight blocked shots. Kevin McHale led all scorers with 33 points, while Larry Bird had just 17 points on 6-of-13 shooting.

Back home in Boston, where they lost just once all season, the Celtics jumped out to an early lead and never looked back. Larry Bird was the catalyst, nearly posting a triple-double in the first half (16 points, eight rebounds, eight assists). Because of his actions in Game 5, Ralph Sampson was booed every time he touched the ball and had just two points in the first half on 1-of-8 shooting. Boston led by 17 points at halftime, and Houston never got closer than 14 in the second half.

Bird finished with 29 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists, his second triple-double of the series, earning MVP honors. Bird put up 24.0 PPG, 9.7 RPG and 9.5 APG for the series, averaging nearly a triple-double. Kevin McHale also scored 29 for the Celtics, who had six players in double figures in Game 6. Hakeem Olajuwon was Houston's leading scorer in Game 6 with 19 points. He averaged 24.7 points, 11.8 rebounds and 3.2 blocks for the series.

When the NBA compilied its list of the 60 Greatest Playoff Moments to coincide with the league's 60th anniversary, Bird's triple-double ranked No. 40 on the list.