HBO’s Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty episode 2 already lays the foundation for the epic rivalry between the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics that dominated the 1980s. The focus of HBO’s show might be on the true story of the Lakers' 1980s dynasty, but that story can’t be properly told without also exploring other aspects of NBA history. This includes a major role for the Boston Celtics, as the rival organization is an integral part of the decade.
The Boston Celtics connections to the Los Angeles Lakers have been a big focus of Winning Time. The series kicked off by covering how the Boston team dominated the Lakers over the last decade. Winning Time episode 2 brought one of the men responsible for this into the picture, as Michael Chiklis plays Red Auerbach. The legendary Celtics coach and executive won 13 titles with the Celtics before the 1980s began. Red’s role in Winning Time episode 2 sees him attempt to get Jerry Buss to fold on his hopes of making the Lakers a champion. It all leads to a meeting between the two that sets up the epic Celtics/Lakers rivalry of the 1980s.
At the end of Winning Time episode 2, Jerry Buss is ready to kick off a decade-long rivalry with Red Auerbach after their last conversation went poorly. Jerry brings Red to The Forum to tell him that he wants to rip his heart out and make the world forget about the Celtics’ achievements because the Lakers are more successful. Since this comes right before the start of the 1979-1980 NBA season, the conversation precedes a 10-year stretch where the Lakers or Celtics were in every single NBA Finals. Although the two teams only faced off twice during this stretch, their rivalry still defined the 80s for the NBA.
One of the key reasons why the Celtics and Lakers rivalry became so heated is because both teams welcomed prize rookies to their rosters at the same time. Earvin 'Magic' Johnson and Larry Bird already had a rivalry thanks to the NCAA Championship, where Magic and Michigan State defeated Bird after he returned to college and led Indiana State to an undefeated season. This linked them from the second they joined the NBA, especially since Magic immediately helped lead the Lakers to the NBA Finals and a championship in 1980.
The Lakers’ championship in 1980 was the first of five titles they won during the decade in eight overall appearances. The Celtics followed up with an NBA Finals win in 1981, which was one of three titles they won in five appearances that decade. The Celtics and Lakers rivalry saw each team beat the other in the NBA Finals. The Celtics beat the Lakers in seven games in 1984, and the Lakers then won the championship by beating the Celtics in six games in 1985. The rivalry is widely believed to have helped save the NBA, as it pitted two great franchises and stars against each other for a full decade. The Lakers/Celtics rivalry then took a backseat to Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls’ rein during the 1990s.
New episodes of Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty release every Sunday on HBO/HBO Max at 9pm EST.