Boston Celtics
Team of Note
1968-1969 Boston Celtics
Record: 48-34Overall ranking: 117th, 5.335 points above average
Boston legend tells how an aging, overmatched Celtics team somehow overcame all odds during Bill Russell’s final season and won the franchise’s 11th NBA title in 13 years.
Even a Boston Garden leprechaun, however, should admit Boston didn’t need an overdose of good fortune to win the 1968-1969 NBA title.
The Celtics did finish fourth in the Eastern Conference. Boston did play without home court advantage in any postseason series. The Celtics did show some signs of age.
Boston also showed signs of having the best team in the league. The Celtics led the league with a point differential of +5.6 points per game. Boston also achieved the league’s second-best POST rating, just a fraction behind the up-and-coming New York Knicks.
Sure enough, the Celtics clawed through the playoffs and won another championship. Boston rallied from a 3-2 deficit to topple the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Finals. The wonder, however, is not how Boston won the title. The wonder is how the Celtics lost so many games during the regular season in the first place.
Boston Celtics From Top to Bottom
| All-time Ranking | W-L | Playoffs | ||
| 8 | 1985-86 | Boston Celtics | 67-15 | NBA champion |
| 20 | 1961-62 | Boston Celtics | 60-20 | NBA champion |
| 34 | 1959-60 | Boston Celtics | 59-16 | NBA champion |
| 39 | 1964-65 | Boston Celtics | 62-18 | NBA champion |
| 41 | 1972-73 | Boston Celtics | 68-14 | East finals |
| 42 | 1979-80 | Boston Celtics | 61-21 | East finals |
| 45 | 1966-67 | Boston Celtics | 60-21 | East finals |
| 57 | 1963-64 | Boston Celtics | 59-21 | NBA champion |
| 73 | 1986-87 | Boston Celtics | 59-23 | NBA finalist |
| 75 | 1983-84 | Boston Celtics | 62-20 | NBA champion |
| 77 | 1984-85 | Boston Celtics | 63-19 | NBA finalist |
| 79 | 1962-63 | Boston Celtics | 58-22 | NBA champion |
| 83 | 1981-82 | Boston Celtics | 63-19 | East finals |
| 96 | 1987-88 | Boston Celtics | 57-25 | East finals |
| 104 | 1958-59 | Boston Celtics | 52-20 | NBA champion |
| 108 | 1980-81 | Boston Celtics | 62-20 | NBA champion |
| 122 | 1974-75 | Boston Celtics | 60-22 | East finals |
| 124 | 1968-69 | Boston Celtics | 48-34 | NBA champion |
| 126 | 1982-83 | Boston Celtics | 56-26 | East semifinals |
| 129 | 1990-91 | Boston Celtics | 56-26 | East semifinals |
| 146 | 1957-58 | Boston Celtics | 49-23 | NBA finalist |
| 151 | 1960-61 | Boston Celtics | 57-22 | NBA champion |
| 155 | 1956-57 | Boston Celtics | 44-28 | NBA champion |
| 168 | 1971-72 | Boston Celtics | 56-26 | East finals |
| 175 | 1965-66 | Boston Celtics | 54-26 | NBA champion |
| 198 | 1967-68 | Boston Celtics | 54-28 | NBA champion |
| 230 | 1951-52 | Boston Celtics | 39-27 | East semifinals |
| 241 | 1973-74 | Boston Celtics | 56-26 | NBA champion |
| 246 | 1991-92 | Boston Celtics | 51-31 | East semifinals |
| 253 | 1989-90 | Boston Celtics | 52-30 | East first round |
| 359 | 1970-71 | Boston Celtics | 44-38 | |
| 363 | 1975-76 | Boston Celtics | 54-28 | NBA champion |
| 386 | 1953-54 | Boston Celtics | 42-30 | East finals |
| 392 | 1952-53 | Boston Celtics | 46-25 | East finals |
| 400 | 2001-02 | Boston Celtics | 49-33 | East finals |
| 481 | 1988-89 | Boston Celtics | 42-40 | East first round |
| 503 | 1992-93 | Boston Celtics | 48-34 | East first round |
| 521 | 1955-56 | Boston Celtics | 39-33 | East semifinals |
| 548 | 2004-05 | Boston Celtics | 45-37 | East first round |
| 592 | 1954-55 | Boston Celtics | 36-36 | East finals |
| 643 | 1950-51 | Boston Celtics | 39-30 | East semifinals |
| 657 | 2002-03 | Boston Celtics | 44-38 | East semifinals |
| 688 | 1999-00 | Boston Celtics | 35-47 | |
| 756 | 2005-06 | Boston Celtics | 33-49 | |
| 758 | 1969-70 | Boston Celtics | 34-48 | |
| 787 | 2003-04 | Boston Celtics | 36-46 | East first round |
| 788 | 1994-95 | Boston Celtics | 35-47 | East first round |
| 789 | 1977-78 | Boston Celtics | 32-50 | |
| 791 | 1976-77 | Boston Celtics | 44-38 | East semifinals |
| 799 | 1949-50 | Boston Celtics | 22-46 | |
| 807 | 1997-98 | Boston Celtics | 36-46 | |
| 810 | 1998-99 | Boston Celtics | 19-31 | |
| 819 | 2000-01 | Boston Celtics | 36-46 | |
| 867 | 1948-49 | Boston Celtics | 25-35 | |
| 914 | 1995-96 | Boston Celtics | 33-49 | |
| 930 | 2006-07 | Boston Celtics | 24-58 | |
| 932 | 1947-48 | Boston Celtics | 20-28 | BAA quarterfinals |
| 966 | 1993-94 | Boston Celtics | 32-50 | |
| 979 | 1946-47 | Boston Celtics | 22-38 | |
| 992 | 1978-79 | Boston Celtics | 29-53 | |
| 1079 | 1996-97 | Boston Celtics | 15-67 | |