View source for 1981 NBA Finals

{{Short description|1981 basketball championship series}}
{{More citations needed|date=May 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}}
{{NBA Finals summary
| image = 
| image_size = 200px
| league = NBA
| year = 1981
| runnerup = [[1980–81 Houston Rockets season|Houston Rockets]]
| runnerup_coach = [[Del Harris]]
| runnerup_games = 2
| champion = [[1980–81 Boston Celtics season|Boston Celtics]]
| champion_coach = [[Bill Fitch]]
| champion_games = 4
| date = May 5–14
| MVP = [[Cedric Maxwell]]<br />(Boston Celtics)
| HOFers = '''Celtics:'''<br />[[Nate Archibald]] (1991)<br />[[Larry Bird]] (1998)<br />[[Kevin McHale (basketball)|Kevin McHale]] (1999)<br />[[Robert Parish]] (2003)<br />'''Rockets:'''<br />[[Moses Malone]] (2001)<br />[[Calvin Murphy]] (1993)<br />[[Rudy Tomjanovich]] (2020; coach)<br />'''Coaches:'''<br />[[Bill Fitch]] (2019)<br />[[Del Harris]] (2022)<br />'''Officials:'''<br />[[Darell Garretson]] (2016)<br />[[Earl Strom]] (1995)
| ECF result = [[1980–81 Boston Celtics season|Celtics]] defeated [[1980–81 Philadelphia 76ers season|76ers]], 4–3
| WCF result = [[1980–81 Houston Rockets season|Rockets]] defeated [[1980–81 Kansas City Kings season|Kings]], 4–1
}}

The '''1981 NBA World Championship Series''' was the championship round of the [[National Basketball Association]] (NBA)'s [[1980–81 NBA season|1980–81 season]], and the culmination of the [[1981 NBA Playoffs|season's playoffs]]. It pitted the 62–20 [[Eastern Conference (NBA)|Eastern Conference]] champion [[1980–81 Boston Celtics season|Boston Celtics]] against the 40–42 [[Western Conference (NBA)|Western Conference]] champion [[1980–81 Houston Rockets season|Houston Rockets]]. This series has the distinction of featuring for the third time in NBA history, and last to date, a team with a losing record in the Finals. They were the first team since the [[1958–59 Minneapolis Lakers season|Minneapolis Lakers]] in [[1959 NBA Finals|1959]] to reach the championship round despite having more regular season losses than wins. This, along with [[1986 NBA Finals|1986]] (which was also played by the Celtics and the Rockets), was one of the only two NBA championships of the 1980s not to feature the Lakers.

==Background==

===Houston Rockets===
{{main article|1980–81 Houston Rockets season}}

Prior to the season, the NBA moved the Rockets and [[1980–81 San Antonio Spurs season|San Antonio Spurs]] from the Central Division of the Eastern Conference to the Midwest Division of the Western Conference. The Rockets and Spurs traded places with the [[1980–81 Chicago Bulls season|Chicago Bulls]] and [[1980–81 Milwaukee Bucks season|Milwaukee Bucks]]. The Midwest Division also took in the expansion [[1980–81 Dallas Mavericks season|Dallas Mavericks]].

The Rockets that season were led by [[Moses Malone]], who practically carried the Rockets to the NBA Finals. Meanwhile, [[Calvin Murphy]], the shortest player in the league at the time, set two NBA records, sinking 78 consecutive free throws to break [[Rick Barry]]'s mark of 60 set in {{nbay|1975|end}} and achieving a free-throw percentage of .958, breaking Rick Barry's record set with the Rockets in {{nbay|1978|end}}. Other key contributors of the 1980–81 team were [[Rudy Tomjanovich]], [[Robert Reid (basketball)|Robert Reid]], [[Mike Dunleavy Sr.]], [[Allen Leavell]], [[Billy Paultz]], [[Bill Willoughby]], [[Calvin Garrett]], [[Tom Henderson (basketball)|Tom Henderson]], and [[Major Jones]]. The Rockets clinched the last spot in the playoffs on the final night of the regular season following a loss by the [[Golden State Warriors]] to Seattle, as Golden State had the tiebreaker over Houston.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/GSW/1981_games.html|title = 1980-81 Golden State Warriors Schedule and Results}}</ref> Houston tied with [[1980–81 Kansas City Kings season|Kansas City]] for second place in the Midwest behind San Antonio with a regular season record of 40–42 (this would be only the second time that an NBA team with a losing record would make the Finals, after [[1959 NBA Finals|1959]]).

Houston's playoff run began by drawing the defending NBA champion [[1980–81 Los Angeles Lakers season|Los Angeles Lakers]] and [[Magic Johnson]] in the first round. The Rockets upset Los Angeles, two games to one, with the Rockets winning both games in Los Angeles. The Western Conference semifinals matchup featured the Rockets against the Spurs and multi-year scoring champion [[George Gervin]] in a Texas Shootout. The Rockets would win the series in seven games behind strong contributions from Murphy and Reid, including Murphy's career playoff high of 42 points in the climactic Game 7 at San Antonio. This set up an unlikely Conference finals matchup with Kansas City, being that both teams finished the regular season with identical losing records, together compiling just 80 total victories of 164 games played. The Kings, led by [[Otis Birdsong]], [[Scott Wedman]], and [[Phil Ford (basketball)|Phil Ford]] fell to the Rockets in five games, and the Rockets would break into the NBA Finals for the first time, the first of four in franchise history. It would be the only time two conference finalists in the playoffs both had losing records, and the second and last time to date a team with a losing record made it all the way to the Finals round (the first being the [[1959 NBA Finals|1959]] [[Los Angeles Lakers|Minneapolis Lakers]]).

===Boston Celtics===
{{main article|1980–81 Boston Celtics season}}

This was the Celtics' first appearance in The Finals since their 1976 championship winning team against the [[1975–76 Phoenix Suns season|Phoenix Suns]]. The Celtics were not quite the same team as five years before, as they added the likes of [[Larry Bird]], [[Robert Parish]], and [[Kevin McHale (basketball)|Kevin McHale]], a trio that would come to be known as "The Big Three." [[M. L. Carr]], [[Cedric Maxwell]], and [[Nate Archibald]] were also capable players off the bench, and key cogs in Boston's balanced offensive attack. However, the Celtics lost future Hall of Famers [[Dave Cowens]] and [[JoJo White]] to retirement. Still, the Celtics, led by Bird, won 62 games and managed to squeak past Philadelphia for the league's best record due to tiebreakers.

The Celtics's playoff run started with a first-round bye, straight into the conference semifinals. Despite the layoff, the Celtics easily swept the [[Artis Gilmore]]-led [[1980–81 Chicago Bulls season|Chicago Bulls]], and then faced the defending Eastern Conference champion [[1980–81 Philadelphia 76ers season|Philadelphia 76ers]] for the right to advance to The Finals. After a hard-fought and physical series, the Celtics eventually came back from a three-games-to-one deficit to defeat the Sixers, repeating a feat they accomplished in 1968. Five of the games in the series ended with the winning team on top by two points or less, including a 91-90 nail-biter in Game 7.

Both teams had met in the playoffs the [[1980 NBA Playoffs|year earlier]], when the Rockets were in their final season in the Eastern Conference. The 1980 Eastern Conference semifinal matchup had a slightly different Celtics team, with [[Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame|Hall of Fame]] center [[Dave Cowens]] still playing for the team, as well not featuring perennial stars [[Kevin McHale (basketball)|Kevin McHale]] and [[Robert Parish]], both of whom would not arrive in Boston until the [[1980-81 NBA season|1981 season]]. [[Rick Barry]] for Houston was also in the final season of his career in 1980. The Celtics blew out the Rockets in a four-game sweep, by a total of 74 points in the 1980 Eastern Conference semis.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/NBA_1980_ECS.html#BOS-HOU| title = 1980 NBA Eastern Conference Semifinals - Hawks vs. 76ers {{!}} Basketball-Reference.com}}</ref>

===Road to the Finals===
{{Main article|1981 NBA playoffs}}
{| style="width:100%; font-size:90%" class="wikitable"
|- valign=top
! colspan="2" style="width:45%;"|[[Houston Rockets]] ([[Western Conference (NBA)|Western Conference]] champion)!! !! colspan="2" style="width:45%;"|[[Boston Celtics]] ([[Eastern Conference (NBA)|Eastern Conference]] champion)
|-
|align=right|
{{1980–81 NBA West standings|team=HOU}}6th seed in the West, 12th best league record
!colspan=2|[[1980–81 NBA season|Regular season]]
|
{{1980–81 NBA East standings|team=BOS}}1st seed in the East, best league record
|-
|align=right|Defeated the (3) [[1980–81 Los Angeles Lakers season|Los Angeles Lakers]], 2–1
!colspan=2|First round
|Earned first-round bye
|-
|align=right|Defeated the (2) [[1980–81 San Antonio Spurs season|San Antonio Spurs]], 4–3
!colspan=2|Conference semifinals
|Defeated the (5) [[1980–81 Chicago Bulls season|Chicago Bulls]], 4–0
|-
|align=right|Defeated the (5) [[1980–81 Kansas City Kings season|Kansas City Kings]], 4–1
!colspan=2|Conference finals
|Defeated the (2) [[1980–81 Philadelphia 76ers season|Philadelphia 76ers]], 4–3
|}

(*)The Celtics were tied with the Philadelphia 76ers for the NBA's best record, but the Celtics earned the division title and the overall top seed based on tie-breakers.

===Regular season series===
The [[Boston Celtics]] won both games in the regular season series:
{{basketballbox
 | bg=#fff
 | date = December 19, 1980
 | team1 = [[Houston Rockets]] |score1=119
 | team2 = '''[[Boston Celtics]] |score2=133'''
 | place = [[Boston Garden]], [[Boston]]
 }}
{{basketballbox
 | date = March 4, 1981
 | team1 = '''[[Boston Celtics]] |score1=108'''
 | team2 = [[Houston Rockets]] |score2=101
 | place = [[Lakewood Church Central Campus|The Summit]], [[Houston]], [[Texas]]
}}

==Series summary==
{| class="wikitable"
! Game !! Date !! Home team !! Result !! Road team
|-
| Game 1 || May 5 || '''Boston Celtics''' || 98–95 (1–0) || Houston Rockets
|-
| Game 2 || May 7 || Boston Celtics || 90–92 (1–1) || '''Houston Rockets'''
|-
| Game 3 || May 9 || Houston Rockets || 71–94 (1–2) || '''Boston Celtics'''
|-
| Game 4 || May 10 || '''Houston Rockets''' || 91–86 (2–2) || Boston Celtics
|-
| Game 5 || May 12 || '''Boston Celtics''' || 109–80 (3–2) || Houston Rockets
|-
| Game 6 || May 14 || Houston Rockets || 91–102 (2–4) ||'''Boston Celtics'''
|}

==Game summaries==

===Game 1===
{{Basketballbox|bg=#eee |date=May 5 |time=7:35 p.m. EDT |place=[[Boston Garden]], [[Boston]] |TV=[[NBA on CBS|CBS]]
|team1=[[Houston Rockets]] |score1=95
|team2='''[[Boston Celtics]] |score2=98'''
|report=
|Q1='''29'''–24 |Q2='''28'''–27 |Q3=24–'''25''' |Q4=14–'''22'''
|points1=[[Robert Reid (basketball)|Robert Reid]] 27 |points2=[[Larry Bird]] 18
|rebounds1=[[Moses Malone]] 15 |rebounds2=[[Larry Bird]] 21
|assist1=[[Mike Dunleavy, Sr.|Mike Dunleavy]] 7 |assist2=[[Larry Bird]] 9
|attendance=15,320
|referee=<br />
* No. 10 Darell Garretson
* No. 9 John Vanak
|series=Boston leads the series, 1–0
}}
No one figured this series to be much of a Finals. Houston, in fact, had lost its previous dozen games to the Celtics, including a 4–0 series sweep in the previous years' playoffs. But Malone, who had averaged nearly 28 points and 15 rebounds over the season, would have none of the "Boston Curse". He came into the series fired up, going so far as to call the Celtics "chumps". The Celtics, meanwhile, were coming off three close games in the Eastern Conference finals in upsetting the heavily favored [[Philadelphia 76ers]]. So, the Celtics were understandably flat.

Houston led 57–51 at the half and kept that intensity through the game. Late in the fourth period, with the Celtics trailing 87–84, Bird put up an 18-footer from the right side. As soon as he turned it loose, he immediately rushed in for the rebound. He caught the ball in midair as his momentum was carrying him out of bounds on the baseline just right of the lane. In an instant, he switched the ball to his left hand (a right-handed shot would have hit the side of the backboard) and flipped it in the basket. Bird would finish with 18 points, 21 rebounds, and nine assists. [[Moses Malone]] would grab 15 rebounds, but was held to 13 points.

The crowd went nuts over Bird's shot, with general manager [[Red Auerbach]] leading the cheers. [[Bill Russell]], who was broadcasting the game for CBS, looked on in disbelief.

"Larry was able to make the play", said Russell, "because he not only knew where the ball was going to land, he knew that he knew."

The shot carried Boston to a 98–95 win and Auerbach proclaimed, "It was one of the best shots I've ever seen a player make."

===Game 2===
{{Basketballbox|bg=#eee |date=May 7 |time=7:35 p.m. EDT|place=[[Boston Garden]], [[Boston]] |TV=[[NBA on CBS|CBS]]
|team1='''[[Houston Rockets]] |score1=92'''
|team2=[[Boston Celtics]] |score2=90
|report=
|Q1=22–'''26''' |Q2=23–23 |Q3='''23'''–19 |Q4='''24'''–22
|points1=[[Moses Malone]] 31 |points2=[[Larry Bird]] 19
|rebounds1=[[Moses Malone]] 15 |rebounds2=[[Larry Bird]] 21
|assist1=[[Robert Reid (basketball)|Reid]], [[Tom Henderson (basketball)|Tom Henderson]], [[Allen Leavell|Leavell]] 3 each |assist2=[[Nate Archibald|Archibald]], [[Gerald Henderson]] 4 each
|attendance=15,320
|referee=<br />
* No. 11 Jake O'Donnell
* No. 4 Ed T. Rush
|series=Series tied, 1–1
}}
Malone would come up big in this game, scoring 31 points and pulling down another 15 boards. [[Bill Willoughby]] would add 14 off the bench to make up for poor shooting by [[Robert Reid (basketball)|Robert Reid]] (0 for 7) and [[Calvin Murphy]] (4 for 13). Reserve guard [[Allen Leavell]]'s late basket would give the Rockets the 92–90 victory. Bird would lead the Celtics once again with 19 points and 21 rebounds. The victory was Houston's eighth road win of the playoffs, a record that stood until the 1995 Rockets won nine playoff games en route to winning the championship.

===Game 3===
{{Basketballbox|bg=#eee |date=May 9 |time=2:35 p.m. CDT |place=[[The Summit (Houston)|The Summit]], [[Houston]], [[Texas]] |TV=[[NBA on CBS|CBS]]
|team1='''[[Boston Celtics]] |score1=94'''
|team2=[[Houston Rockets]] |score2=71
|report=
|Q1='''21'''–17 |Q2='''20'''–13 |Q3='''24'''–18 |Q4='''29'''–23
|points1=[[Cedric Maxwell]] 19 |points2=[[Moses Malone]] 23
|rebounds1=[[Larry Bird]] 13 |rebounds2=[[Moses Malone]] 15
|assist1=[[Larry Bird]] 10 |assist2=[[Moses Malone|Malone]], [[Robert Reid (basketball)|Reid]], [[Allen Leavell|Leavell]] 2 each
|attendance=16,121
|referee=<br />
* No. 9 John Vanak
* No. 12 Earl Strom
|series=Boston leads the series, 2–1
}}
With the series back in Houston, [[Robert Reid (basketball)|Robert Reid]], matched up with [[Larry Bird]], would begin to garner attention for his defense on the Celtics star, holding him to three baskets and eight points. But, the Celtics would not need Bird's scoring in this one. The Rockets shot a paltry 3 for 17 in the second quarter, fell behind by 17, and never recovered.

The Celtics had six players who scored in double figures, led by [[Cedric Maxwell]] with 19 points. His teammates, meanwhile, played some pretty good defense of their own, holding the Rockets to 71 points, the lowest output for an NBA team in a Finals game since the [[Syracuse Nationals]] scored 71 in the 1955 NBA Finals (which was, incidentally, the year the [[shot clock]] was introduced). The record low stood until it was embarrassingly shattered by the [[Utah Jazz]] in Game 3 of the [[1998 NBA Finals|1998 Finals]] when they lost 96–54 to [[Chicago Bulls]].

===Game 4===
{{Basketballbox|bg=#eee |date=May 10 |time=12:05 p.m. CDT |place=[[The Summit (Houston)|The Summit]], [[Houston]], [[Texas]] |TV=[[NBA on CBS|CBS]]
|team1=[[Boston Celtics]] |score1=86
|team2='''[[Houston Rockets]] |score2=91'''
|report=
|Q1=26–26 |Q2=24–24 |Q3=17–'''25''' |Q4='''19'''–16
|points1=[[Cedric Maxwell]] 24 |points2=[[Mike Dunleavy, Sr.|Mike Dunleavy]] 28
|rebounds1=[[Cedric Maxwell]] 14 |rebounds2=[[Moses Malone]] 22
|assist1=[[Larry Bird]] 7 |assist2=[[Tom Henderson (basketball)|Tom Henderson]] 9
|attendance=16,121
|referee=<br />
* No. 10 Darell Garretson
* No. 4 Ed T. Rush
|series=Series tied, 2–2
}}
Reid continued his air-tight defense on Bird, holding him to another eight points, while scoring 19 himself. The star of this game was [[Mike Dunleavy, Sr.]], who had 28 points. Malone would add 24 points and 22 rebounds as the Rockets tied the series. Another key was the Rockets' relentless offensive rebounding and second-chance opportunities; they grabbed 28 offensive rebounds (Reid had 10 and Malone nine with four put-back dunks) on the way to out-shooting the Celtics in attempts, 103 to 74.

===Game 5===
{{Basketballbox|bg=#eee |date=May 12 |time=9:05 p.m. EDT |place=[[Boston Garden]], [[Boston]] |TV=[[NBA on CBS|CBS]]
|team1=[[Houston Rockets]] |score1=80
|team2='''[[Boston Celtics]] |score2=109'''
|report=
|Q1=19–'''34''' |Q2=18–'''25''' |Q3=18–18 |Q4=25–'''32'''
|points1=[[Moses Malone]] 20 |points2=[[Cedric Maxwell]] 28
|rebounds1=[[Moses Malone]] 11 |rebounds2=[[Cedric Maxwell]] 15
|assist1=[[Allen Leavell]] 6 |assist2=[[Larry Bird]] 8
|attendance=15,320
|referee=<br />No. 12 Earl Strom<br />No. 22 Paul Mihalik<br />No. 7 Joe Gushue (alternate)
|series=Boston leads the series, 3–2
}}
The Rockets had a losing regular season record at 40–42, but, up to Game 5, they showed they definitely belonged in the finals with the Celtics. So, no one could blame [[Moses Malone]] for doing some trash-talking. Earlier, he had simply declared, "Boston ain't that good." Before Game 5, though, Malone went a little too far, saying, "I could get four guys off the street in Petersburg (Virginia, Malone's hometown) and beat them." This was all coach [[Bill Fitch]] would need to motivate his troops.

With Bird still struggling offensively, [[Cedric Maxwell]] shouldered the load, scoring 28 points and pulling down 15 rebounds and sparking several fast breaks to a Celtics rout, 109–80.

The infamous on-air incident between [[Rick Barry]] and [[Bill Russell]] occurred early in the third quarter of this game.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcY3CmT3sm8&t=96s|title = The infamous Rick Barry-Bill Russell Watermelon Grin incident FULL|website = [[YouTube]]}}</ref>

===Game 6===
{{Basketballbox|bg=#eee |date=May 14 |time=9:05 p.m. CDT |place=[[The Summit (Houston)|The Summit]], [[Houston]], [[Texas]] |TV=[[NBA on CBS|CBS]]
|team1='''[[Boston Celtics]] |score1=102'''
|team2=[[Houston Rockets]] |score2=91
|report=
|Q1='''25'''–24 |Q2='''28'''–23 |Q3='''29'''–20 |Q4=20–'''24'''
|points1=[[Larry Bird]] 27 |points2=[[Robert Reid (basketball)|Robert Reid]] 27
|rebounds1=[[Larry Bird]] 13 |rebounds2=[[Moses Malone]] 16
|assist1=[[Nate Archibald]] 12 |assist2=[[Tom Henderson (basketball)|Tom Henderson]], [[Robert Reid (basketball)|Reid]] 5 each 
|attendance=16,121
|referee=<br />
* No. 11 Jake O'Donnell
* No. 14 Jack Madden
|series=Boston wins the series, 4–2
}}
Motivated from Malone's previous barbs, the Celtics took it right to the Rockets back at [[The Summit (Houston)|The Summit]], leading 84–67 in the final period. However, as coach Fitch looked on in disgust, the Celtics went five minutes without a basket as the Rockets, led by [[Calvin Garrett]], reeled off 13 unanswered points in a furious comeback and eventually cut the lead to only three, with the Houston crowd erupting louder after each basket. [[Larry Bird]] then finally broke out of his shooting doldrums to personally blunt the Rockets' rally. Bird hit a 15-foot jumper, fed series MVP Maxwell for a basket, and hit a back-breaking, 24-foot, three-point shot to put the Rockets away for good and send Boston to its 14th NBA Championship, and at last a championship ring for 11-year veteran [[Nate Archibald]].

As of 2024, this is the most recent time the Celtics have clinched a championship on the road, with each of their next four titles being won at home.

==Player statistics==
{{NBA roster statistics legend}}

;Boston Celtics
{{NBA roster statistics start|team=Boston Celtics}}
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|Chris|Ford}} || 6 || 6 || 30.7 || .500 || .222 || .778 || 2.7 || 2.3 || 0.7 || 0.0 || 10.5 
|-! style="background:#FDE910;"
| align="left" | {{sortname|Cedric|Maxwell}} || 6 || 6 || 37.8 || '''.568''' || .000 || .759 || 9.5 || 2.8 || 0.2 || 1.0 || '''17.7'''
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|Larry|Bird}} || 6 || 6 || '''42.8''' || .419 || '''.333''' || .813 || '''15.3''' || '''7.0''' || '''2.3''' || 0.5 || 15.3 
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|Kevin|McHale|dab=basketball}} || 6 || 0 || 13.8 || .387 || .000 || .571 || 3.3 || 0.8 || 0.0 || 0.7 || 4.7 
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|Tiny|Archibald}} || 6 || 6 || 33.8 || .364 || .000 || '''.875''' || 1.2 || 5.5 || 0.7 || 0.0 || 10.3 
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|Rick|Robey}} || 6 || 0 || 16.3 || .559 || .000 || .563 || 3.7 || 0.3 || 0.0 || 0.2 || 7.8 
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|Gerald|Henderson}} || 6 || 0 || 15.8 || .559 || .000 || .833 || 1.7 || 1.7 || 0.7 || 0.3 || 7.2 
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|Robert|Parish}} || 6 || 6 || 27.8 || .506 || .000 || .632 || 7.7 || 1.0 || 1.2 || '''2.0''' || 15.0 
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|M.L.|Carr}} || 6 || 0 || 18.3 || .459 || .000 || .750 || 1.7 || 1.0 || 0.7 || 0.7 || 4.7 
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|Terry|Duerod}} || 4 || 0 || 1.5 || .429 || .000 || .000 || 0.0 || 0.0 || 0.3 || 0.0 || 1.5
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|Eric|Fernsten}} || 4 || 0 || 2.5|| .000 || .000 || .667 || 1.0 || 0.3 || 0.3 || 0.0 || 0.5 
{{s-end}}

;Houston Rockets
{{NBA roster statistics start|team=Houston Rockets}}
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|Tom|Henderson|Tom Henderson (basketball)}} || 6 || 6 || 32.2 || .395 || .000 || .733 || 2.2 || '''4.2''' || 0.7 || 0.2 || 6.8 
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|Allen|Leavell}} || 5 || 0 || 14.6 || .303 || .000 || .714 || 1.4 || 3.4 || 0.6 || 0.6 || 5.0
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|Robert|Reid|Robert Reid (basketball)}} || 6 || 6 || 40.7 || .375 || .000 || .696 || 7.5 || 3.3 || '''2.0''' || 0.8 || 14.7 
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|Mike|Dunleavy|Mike Dunleavy, Sr.}} || 6 || 6 || 27.5 || .415 || '''.429''' || .800 || 2.3 || 3.2 || 1.7 || 0.2 || 17.7 
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|Billy|Paultz}} || 6 || 6 || 32.7 || .403 || .000 || .625 || 6.0 || 1.3 || 1.2 || 0.7 || 11.2
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|Moses|Malone}} || 6 || 6 || '''44.8''' || .403 || .000 || .673 || '''15.7''' || 1.3 || 0.8 || '''2.2''' || '''22.3''' 
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|Bill|Willoughby}} || 6 || 0 || 22.3 || .269 || .000 || .739 || 4.5 || 1.2 || 1.0 || 0.8 || 7.5 
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|Calvin|Murphy}} || 4 || 0 || 22.0 || .395 || .000 || .833 || 1.0 || 0.8 || 1.0 || 0.0 || 9.8 
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|Calvin|Garrett}} || 4 || 0 || 10.8 || '''.556''' || .000 || '''1.000''' || 1.8 || 0.3 || 0.5 || 0.3 || 3.0 
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|Major|Jones}} || 3 || 0 || 6.0 || .500 || .000 || .333 || 1.7 || 0.3 || 0.3 || 0.3 || 3.0 
|-
| align="left" | {{sortname|Rudy|Tomjanovich}} || 3 || 0 || 5.7 || .125 || .000 || .000 || 1.3 || 0.0 || 0.0 || 0.0 || 0.7 
{{s-end}}
<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/1981-nba-finals-rockets-vs-celtics.html|title = 1981 NBA Finals - Rockets vs. Celtics}}</ref>

==Television coverage==
* The 1981 NBA Finals received the lowest television [[Nielsen ratings|rating]] in history up to that point, with a 6.7 rating. (It would remain the lowest ever until the 2003 Finals between the [[San Antonio Spurs]] and [[New Jersey Nets]] drew a 6.5 rating.) Due to this, the 1981 finals were the last to be broadcast on tape-delay, with weeknight games airing after the late local news in most cities. Games 3 and 4 were played back-to-back on Saturday and Sunday, May 9 and 10, to give [[NBA on CBS|CBS]] two live Finals games; it is the last time Finals games were played on consecutive days. Game 3 was the last Finals contest played on a Saturday until Game 5 in [[2021 NBA Finals|2021]]. Game 4 tipped off at noon Central (1 p.m. Eastern/10 a.m. Pacific) in order for CBS to telecast golf following the game. Had Game 7 been played, it would have tipped off at 1 p.m. Eastern. 
*Following the Finals, [[Gary Bender]] became the lead play-by-play announcer for [[College Basketball on CBS|CBS' coverage]] of the [[NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament]], while [[Rick Barry]]'s contract, following his questionable racial comments about [[Bill Russell]] during the Finals, was not renewed. Russell would remain the main color analyst for the next two years alongside newly promoted main play-by-play commentator [[Dick Stockton]]. Curiously, Barry and Russell would reunite, this time on the ''[[NBA on TBS]]'' for two seasons beginning in the 1984–85 season. Russell was replaced as CBS' lead analyst following the [[1983 NBA Finals|1983 Finals]] by former Celtics teammate [[Tom Heinsohn]].
*[[Brent Musburger]] narrated the duration of the 1981 NBA Playoffs on film, known as "The Dynasty Renewed". The 1981 film was expanded from 30 minutes to one hour, with more highlights from rounds prior to the finals.

==Team rosters==

===Boston Celtics===
{{NBA roster header|team=Boston Celtics|season=1980–81}}
<!-- begin list of players -->
{{player2 | num = 7 | first = Nate | last = Archibald | pos = G | ft = 6 | in = 1 | lbs = 170 | college = UTEP | DOB = 1948–09–02}}
{{player2 | num = 33 | first = Larry | last = Bird | pos = F | ft = 6 | in = 9 | lbs = 220 | college = Indiana State | DOB = 1956–12–07}}
{{player2 | num = 30 | first = M.L. | last = Carr | pos = F | ft = 6 | in = 6 | lbs = 205 | college = Guilford College | DOB = 1951–01–09}}
{{player2 | num = 40 | first = Terry | last = Duerod | pos = G | ft = 6 | in = 2 | lbs = 180 | college = Detroit | DOB = 1956–07–29}}
{{player2 | num = 45 | first = Eric | last = Fernsten | pos = C | ft = 6 | in = 10 | lbs = 205 | college = San Francisco | DOB = 1953–11–01}}
{{player2 | num = 42 | first = Chris | last = Ford | pos = G | ft = 6 | in = 5 | lbs = 190 | college = Villanova | DOB = 1949–01–11}}
{{player2 | num = 43 | first = Gerald | last = Henderson | pos = G | ft = 6 | in = 2 | lbs = 175 | college = VCU | DOB = 1956–01–16}}
{{player2 | num = 31 | first = Cedric | last = Maxwell | pos = F | ft = 6 | in = 8 | lbs = 205 | college = University of North Carolina at Charlotte | DOB = 1955–11–21}}
{{player2 | num = 32 | first = Kevin | last = McHale | dab = basketball | pos = F | ft = 6 | in = 10 | lbs = 210 | school = University of Minnesota | DOB = 1957–12–19}}
{{player2 | num = 00 | first = Robert | last = Parish | pos = C | ft = 7 | in = 0 | lbs = 230 | school = Centenary | DOB = 1953–08–30}}
{{player2 | num = 53 | first = Rick | last = Robey | pos = C | ft = 6 | in = 11 | lbs = 230 | college = Kentucky | DOB = 1956–01–30}}
<!-- end list of players -->
{{NBA roster footer
| head_coach =
* {{player||USA|[[Bill Fitch]]}} ({{college|Coe}})
| asst_coach =
* {{player||USA|[[K.C. Jones]]}} ({{college|University of San Francisco}})
* {{player||USA|[[Jimmy Rodgers (basketball)|Jimmy Rodgers]]}} ({{college|Ohio State}})
}}

===Houston Rockets===
{{NBA roster header|team=Houston Rockets|season=1980–81
| bg1 = #CE1141 | color1 = #FFFFFF
| bg2 = #FDB927 | color2 = #000000
}}
<!-- begin list of players -->
{{player2 | num = 10 | first=Mike | last=Dunleavy Sr.| pos = G | ft = 6 | in = 3 | lbs = 180 | college = South Carolina | DOB = 1954–03–21 }}
{{player2 | num = 00 | first = Calvin | last = Garrett | pos = F | ft = 6 | in = 7 | lbs = 190 | college = Oral Roberts | DOB = 1956–07–11 }}
{{player2 | num = 6 | first = Tom | last = Henderson | dab = basketball | pos = G | ft = 6 | in = 3 | lbs = 190 | college = Hawaii | DOB = 1952–01–26 }}
{{player2 | num = 11 | first = Major | last = Jones | pos = F | ft = 6 | in = 9 | lbs = 225 | college = Albany State | DOB = 1953–07–09 }}
{{player2 | num = 30 | first = Allen | last = Leavell | pos = G | ft = 6 | in = 1 | lbs = 170 | college = Oklahoma City | DOB = 1957–05–27 }}
{{player2 | num = 24 | first = Moses | last = Malone | pos = C | ft = 6 | in = 10 | lbs = 260 | college = [[Petersburg High School (Virginia)|Petersburg HS (VA)]] | DOB = 1955–03–23 }}
{{player2 | num = 23 | first = Calvin | last = Murphy | pos = G | ft = 5 | in = 9 | lbs = 165 | college = Niagara | DOB = 1948–05–09 }}
{{player2 | num = 5 | first = Billy | last = Paultz | pos = C | ft = 6 | in = 11 | lbs = 235 | college = St. John's | DOB = 1948–07–30 }}
{{player2 | num = 50 | first = Robert | last = Reid | dab = basketball | pos = F | ft = 6 | in = 8 | lbs = 228 | college = [[St. Mary's University, Texas| St. Mary's (TX)]] | DOB = 1955–08–30 }}
{{player2 | num = 45 | first = Rudy | last = Tomjanovich | pos = F | ft = 6 | in = 8 | lbs = 228 | college = Michigan | DOB = 1948–11–24 }}
{{player2 | num = 32 | first = Bill | last = Willoughby | pos = F | ft = 6 | in = 8 | lbs = 205 | college = [[Dwight Morrow High School|Dwight Morrow HS (NJ)]] | DOB = 1957–05–20 }}
<!-- end list of players -->
{{NBA roster footer
| head_coach =
* {{player||USA|[[Del Harris]]}} ({{college|Milligan}})
| asst_coach =
* {{player||USA|[[Herb Brown]]}} ({{college|Vermont}})
* {{player||USA|[[Carroll Dawson]]}} ({{college|Baylor}})
}}

==See also==
* [[1981 NBA playoffs]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120222181104/http://www.nba.com/history/finals/19801981.html NBA History]
* [http://www.nba.com/ NBA Official Website]

{{NBA Finals}}
{{Boston Celtics 1980–81 NBA champions}}
{{Boston Celtics}}
{{Houston Rockets}}
{{1980–81 NBA season by team}}
{{NBA on CBS}}
{{NBA on Mutual}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:1981 Nba Finals}}
[[Category:NBA Finals]]
[[Category:1980–81 NBA season|Finals]]
[[Category:Boston Celtics games|NBA Finals]]
[[Category:Houston Rockets games|NBA Finals]]
[[Category:1981 in Boston|NBA Finals]]
[[Category:1981 in sports in Texas|NBA Finals]]
[[Category:1981 in sports in Massachusetts|NBA Finals]]
[[Category:Basketball competitions in Boston]]
[[Category:1981 in Houston|NBA Finals]]
[[Category:Basketball competitions in Houston]]
[[Category:May 1981 sports events in the United States|NBA Finals]]
[[Category:Events at the Boston Garden]]