Unlike all the rest, the 60-year tussle between the LA Lakers and the Boston Celtics, with the two franchises feuding to this day. With the Massachusetts side now having just overtaken the Lakers in the ring tally, former Celtics guard, Cedric Maxwell decided hilariously decided to rub the C’s new achievement in the face of the retired showtime Lakers.
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The whole fiasco kicked off in Boston’lockerroom, where Tatum and the Celtics were busy celebrating their franchise’s 18th Championship. Maxwell, who happened to be, in attendance, gave veteran journalist Rachel Nichols a few comments about Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and the Celtics. The 2-time NBA Champion started off by congratulating the young Celtics team, declaring that he was extremely proud of the squad.
But Cedric didn’t stop there. The 68-year-old also took the opportunity to take a dig at his former rivals, the Lakers. The 1981 Finals MVP said,
“I am so proud of what these guys accomplished today. Let me say this before I go. Bye-Bye Lakers. James Worthy, Goodnight. Magic [Johnson] bye-bye. Worthy, Cooper, Byron Scott all of you. Goodbye.”
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Given that the Celtics just passed up the Lakers’ tally of 17 NBA championships, perhaps Magic Johnson and Co. saw this coming. Still, it will likely sting them quite a bit knowing full well that the Boston Celtics have bragging rights over the LA Lakers all over again. And it’s not hard to imagine Maxwell absolutely loving it.
The man who won Finals MVP over Bird, Cedric Maxwell
Basketball in the 80s belonged to Magic and Bird, as the duo brought their NCAA rivalry to the forefront of the league. But just like Magic had Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as a senior player, Larry Bird had Cedric Maxwell.
In fact, Maxwell was finishing up his rookie deal by the time Larry legend came around. Trailing right behind were Robert Parish and Kevin McHale, who would be picked up in the subsequent drafts as well.
The four All-Stars would band together and form the core of the 80’s Celtics. In the other conference, the Lakers were also suiting up for a dominant run as the team now had one of the greatest two-man tangos in Kareem and Magic.
Cedric and the Celtics would open their campaign of the 80s by first capturing the 1981 championship, in which Maxwell won Finals MVP over Bird, the only time he would do so.
To this day, while the now 68-year-old is not as high as Larry Bird in the all-time rankings, he is still beloved by fans in Boston. And considering the long-time servant he was to the franchise, it is only justified for all of Boston to see him as a hero, no matter the era.
