1990–91 Boston Celtics season

The 1990–91 NBA season was the 45th season for the Boston Celtics in the National Basketball Association.[1] After failing to advance past the first round in the two previous seasons, it appeared going into the 1990–91 season that the Celtics were fading as NBA title contenders. However, the Celtics burst to a 29–5 start reminiscent of their title years of the 1980s and once again established themselves as contenders. Besides general team improvement (and perhaps the chemistry employed by new head coach Chris Ford), the Celtics were helped by the return of 1988 first round draft pick Brian Shaw (who had played in Italy in the 89–90 season). Beginning in January, Larry Bird began to miss significant playing time due to back injuries (Bird would miss 22 regular season games) and the team struggled in his absence.[2] The team limped to the finish, losing 6 of their final 8 games to finish at 56–26 (still good for the Atlantic Division title and #2 seed in the East). Rookie Dee Brown won the Slam Dunk Contest during the All-Star Weekend in Charlotte.

1990–91 Boston Celtics season
Division champions
Head coachChris Ford
OwnersDon Gaston
Alan N. Cohen
Paul Dupee
ArenaBoston Garden
Hartford Civic Center
Results
Record56–26 (.683)
PlaceDivision: 1st (Atlantic)
Conference: 2nd (Eastern)
Playoff finishEast Conference Semifinals
(Lost to Pistons 2-4)
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
TelevisionWFXT
(Tom Heinsohn, Bob Cousy)
SportsChannel New England
(Mike Gorman, Tom Heinsohn)
RadioWEEI
(Glenn Ordway, Doug Brown)

In the first round of the playoffs, the Celtics survived a scare from the 7th-seeded Indiana Pacers, going the full five games before winning a classic finale (in which Bird went to the locker room during the game with injury, only to return and finish with 32 points).[3] In the eastern semis, the Celtics held home court advantage against the 2-time defending NBA Champion Detroit Pistons, but Bird missed Game 1 with injury and the Pistons took the game at Boston Garden. Bird returned for the remainder of the series and the Celtics rallied to win Games 2 and 3 (Game 3 a blowout win in Detroit), but Detroit won 3 in a row afterwards to take the series.[4]

Draft picks
Main article: 1990 NBA Draft
Round Pick Player Position Nationality College
1 19 Dee Brown SG/PG  United States Jacksonville

Roster
Roster listing
Boston Celtics roster
Players Coaches
Pos.No.NameHeightWeightDOB (YYYY-MM-DD)From
PF 33 Bird, Larry 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Indiana State
PG 7 Brown, Dee 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Jacksonville
SF 34 Gamble, Kevin 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Iowa
C 53 Kleine, Joe 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 255 lb (116 kg) Arkansas
SG 35 Lewis, Reggie 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Northeastern
PF 32 McHale, Kevin 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Minnesota
C 00 Parish, Robert 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Centenary College of Louisiana
PF 54 Pinckney, Ed 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Villanova
PF 42 Popson, Dave 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 220 lb (100 kg) North Carolina
PG 20 Shaw, Brian 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 190 lb (86 kg) UC Santa Barbara
PG 13 Smith, Charles E. 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Georgetown
SG 43 Smith, Derek  6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Louisville
PF 11 Smith, Mike 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 225 lb (102 kg) BYU
C 52 Vranković, Stojko 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) 260 lb (118 kg)
PG 12 Wynder, A. J. 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Fairfield
Head coach
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured

Depth chart

PG-20 Brian Shaw SG-35 Reggie Lewis SF-34 Kevin Gamble PF-33 Larry Bird C-00 Robert Parrish

Regular season

Season standings
Atlantic Division W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-Boston Celtics5626.683—35–621–2020-6
x-Philadelphia 76ers4438.5371229-1215-2614-12
x-New York Knicks3943.4761721-2018-2317–9
Washington Bullets3052.3662621-209-3210-16
New Jersey Nets2656.3173020-216–358-18
Miami Heat2458.2933218-236-359-17
y – clinched division title
x – clinched playoff spot
# Eastern Conference
Team W L PCT GB
1 c-Chicago Bulls6121.744–
2 y-Boston Celtics5626.6835
3 x-Detroit Pistons5032.61011
4 x-Milwaukee Bucks4834.58513
5 x-Philadelphia 76ers4438.53717
6 x-Atlanta Hawks4339.52418
7 x-Indiana Pacers4141.50020
8 x-New York Knicks3943.47622
9 Cleveland Cavaliers3349.40228
10 Washington Bullets3052.36631
11 New Jersey Nets2656.31735
12 Charlotte Hornets2656.31735
13 Miami Heat2458.29337
z – clinched division title
y – clinched division title
x – clinched playoff spot

Record vs. opponents
1990-91 NBA Records
Team ATL BOS CHA CHI CLE DAL DEN DET GSW HOU IND LAC LAL MIA MIL MIN NJN NYK ORL PHI PHO POR SAC SAS SEA UTA WAS
Atlanta —3–11–41–43–22–01–10–51–11–14–12–01–14–02–31–13–13–11–10–40–21–12–02–01–11–12–2
Boston 1–3—3–12–23–12–02–02–21–12–02–22–01–14–12–22–04–15–01–12–31–11–12–01–12–01–15–1
Charlotte 4–11–3—0–51–41–10–21–41–10–20–51–10–22–22–31–12–20–42–02–20–20–22–01–10–20–22–2
Chicago 4–12–25–0—5–02–02–03–21–10–24–12–01–14–04–12–03–14–02–01–31–10–22–00–22–02–03–1
Cleveland 2–31–34–10–5—2–01–12–30–20–21–41–11–13–12–31–12–23–12–02–20–20–21–10–21–10–21–3
Dallas 0–20–21–10–20–2—3–10–22–21–32–01–32–20–21–11–42–02–01–41–10–41–32–21–42–20–52–0
Denver 1–10–22–00–21–11–3—0–21–30–50–20–40–40–21–13–21–11–12–30–20–40–43–11–40–41–31–1
Detroit 5–02–24–12–33–22–02–0—1–12–03–22–00–23–12–32–03–11–32–02–20–21–12–00–21–10–23–1
Golden State 1–11–11–11–12–02–23–11–1—2–21–13–22–32–01–13–11–12–02–22–01–32–32–32–23–11–30–2
Houston 1–10–22–02–02–03–15–00–22–2—1–12–21–32–02–05–02–02–03–22–03–10–43–12–32–22–21–1
Indiana 1–42–25–01–44–10–22–02–31–11–1—1–10–22–22–31–13–12–21–11–31–10–22–01–11–12–02–2
L.A. Clippers 0–20–21–10–21–13–14–00–22–32–21–1—0–40–21–13–11–10–21–30–22–31–33–22–22–31–30–2
L.A. Lakers 1–11–12–01–11–12–24–02–03–23–12–04–0—2–00–23–12–01–14–01–13–22–34–03–13–22–22–0
Miami 0–41–42–20–41–32–02–01–30–20–22–22–00–2—0–40–23–31–41–11–40–20–21–10–20–21–13–2
Milwaukee 3–22–23–21–43–21–11–13–21–10–23–21–12–04–0—1–12–24–02–02–21–11–11–11–11–11–13–1
Minnesota 1–10–21–10–21–14–12–30–21–30–51–11–31–32–01–1—1–11–12–22–00–40–43–10–42–21–41–1
New Jersey 1–31–42–21–32–20–21–11–31–10–21–31–10–23–32–21–1—0–51–12–31–10–21–10–21–10–22–3
New York 1–30–54–00–41–30–21–13–10–20–22–22–01–14–10–41–15–0—0–25–10–20–22–01–11–12–03–2
Orlando 1–11–10–20–20–24–13–20–22–22–31–13–10–41–10–22–21–12–0—0–22–20–42–21–31–31–41–1
Philadelphia 4–03–22–23–12–21–12–02–20–20–23–12–01–14–12–20–23–21–52–0—1–11–11–10–21–10–23–2
Phoenix 2–01–12–01–12–04–04–02–03–11–31–13–22–32–01–14–01–12–02–21–1—3–23–11–33–22–22–0
Portland 1–11–12–02–02–03–14–01–13–24–02–03–13–22–01–14–02–02–04–01–12–3—3–22–24–03–12–0
Sacramento 0–20–20–20–21–12–21–30–23–21–30–22–30–41–11–11–31–10–22–21–11–32–3—1–31–41–32–0
San Antonio 0–21–11–12–02–04–14–12–02–23–21–12–21–32–01–14–02–01–13–12–03–12–23–1—3–12–32–0
Seattle 1–10–22–00–21–12–24–01–11–32–21–13–22–32–01–12–21–11–13–11–12–30–44–11–3—1–32–0
Utah 1–11–12–00–22–05–03–12–03–12–20–23–12–21–11–14–12–00–24–12–02–21–33–13–23–1—2–0
Washington 2–21–52–21–33–10–21–11–32–01–12–22–00–22–31–31–13–22–31–12–30–20–20–20–20–20–2—

Game log
1990-91 Game Log
November
December
January
February
March
April
1990-91 Schedule

Playoffs
1991 playoff game log
First Round: 3–2 (Home: 2–1; Road: 1–1)
East Semifinals: 2–4 (Home: 1–2; Road: 1–2)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Series
1 May 7 Detroit Pistons L 75-86 R. Lewis (20) K. McHale (10) B. Shaw (5) Boston Garden
14,890		 0-1
2 May 9 Detroit Pistons W 109-103 R. Lewis (23) R. Parish (13) D. Brown (8) Boston Garden
14,890		 1-1
3 May 11 @ Detroit Pistons W 115-83 R. Lewis (21) R. Parish (11) D. Brown,
K. McHale (6)		 The Palace of Auburn Hills
21,454		 2-1
4 May 13 @ Detroit Pistons L 97-104 K. McHale (28) R. Parish (10) B. Shaw (6) The Palace of Auburn Hills
21,454		 2-2
5 May 15 Detroit Pistons L 111-116 R. Lewis (30) R. Lewis (11) D. Brown (10) Boston Garden
14,890		 2-3
6 May 17 @ Detroit Pistons L 113-117 (OT) K. McHale (34) E. Pinckney (9) R. Lewis (5) The Palace of Auburn Hills
21,454		 2-4
1991 playoff schedule

Player statistics
Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game

Season
Boston Celtics statistics
Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Larry Bird 606038.0.454.389.8918.57.21.81.019.4
Dee Brown 82523.7.464.206.8732.24.21.00.28.7
Kevin Gamble 827633.0.587.000.8153.33.11.20.415.6
Joe Kleine 72111.8.468.000.7833.40.30.20.23.6
Reggie Lewis 797936.4.491.077.8265.22.51.21.118.7
Kevin McHale 681030.4.553.405.8297.11.90.42.118.4
Robert Parish 818130.1.598.000.76710.60.80.81.3

14.9

Ed Pinckney 701616.6.539.000.8974.90.60.90.65.2
Dave Popson 1903.4.406.000.9000.70.10.10.11.8
Brian Shaw 797935.1.469.111.8194.77.61.30.413.8
Charles E. Smith 506.0.429.000.6000.41.20.20.01.8
Derek Smith 208.0.250.000.7500.02.50.50.52.5
Michael Smith 4738.3.475.250.8151.20.90.10.04.6
Stojko Vranković 3105.4.462.000.5561.60.10.00.91.9
A. J. Wynder 606.5.250.000.7500.51.30.20.02.0

Playoffs
Boston Celtics statistics
Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Larry Bird 101039.6.408.143.8637.26.51.30.317.1
Dee Brown 11025.8.491.000.8244.13.71.00.512.2
Kevin Gamble 111121.6.483.000.6671.21.70.40.26.0
Joe Kleine 516.2.444.000.0002.20.20.00.01.6
Reggie Lewis 111142.0.487.000.8246.22.91.10.522.4
Kevin McHale 11134.2.527.545.8256.51.80.51.320.7
Robert Parish 101029.6.598.000.6899.20.60.80.715.8
Ed Pinckney 11015.5.762.000.8103.60.20.50.24.5
Brian Shaw 111128.7.470.333.8673.54.60.90.111.0
Derek Smith 1008.6.429.000.7860.90.50.30.12.9
Michael Smith 203.0.500.000.0000.00.50.00.01.0
Stojko Vranković 104.01.000.000.0002.00.00.00.02.0

Awards and records

Transactions
Players Added

Draft

Free agency

 Players Lost

Released

Free agency

References
  1. 1990–91 Boston Celtics
  2. "SPORTS PEOPLE: PRO BASKETBALL; Back Surgery for Bird". New York Times. June 7, 1991. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  3. "BASKETBALL; The Legend Grows For Bird and Celtics". New York Times. May 6, 1991. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  4. "BASKETBALL; Quest for Third Title Alive as Pistons Eliminate Celtics". New York Times. May 18, 1991. Retrieved July 26, 2017.

See also
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