Sports Programming Network (ESPN) started to
broadcast games; Turner Broadcast Station (TBS)
took over cable rights in 1984. Other media and tech-
nological developments occurred under Stern’s ten-
ure: In 1985, the league began archiving all televised
games, and, at the end of the decade, deals were
struck to broadcast games in Latin America and the
United Kingdom. Stern helped renegotiate the
league salary cap, implemented in 1983; established
an extensive and seminal antidrug policy; and over-
saw league expansion—five new teams were added
during the decade.
Decade of Dynasties The 1980’s was the decade of
dynasties, led by the Lakers, who appeared in eight
out of ten finals and won five championships. The
pinnacle of the Lakers’ success came in 1985, when
the team became the first franchise to win a champi-
onship in the legendary Boston Garden. Led by six-
time MVP and career-points-leader Kareem Abdul-
Jabbar, the Lakers exorcized the ghosts of the past by
finally closing out a series on the Celtics’ home
court. Furthermore, in 1988, the Lakers became the
first team to repeat as champions—a feat that head
coach Pat Riley guaranteed—since the 1969 Celtics.
If the Lakers were the decade’s best team, the
Celtics finished a close second. Anchored by Bird,
Kevin McHale, and Robert Parrish—considered the
preeminent front court in basketball history—Bos-
ton won three championships. The 1985-1986 team
ranks with the greatest Celtics teams of all time; the
team record of sixty-seven wins and fifteen losses is
second-best in franchise history.
The Detroit Pistons, one of the NBA’s oldest
teams, began the decade inauspiciously, finishing
the 1979-1980 campaign 16-66. In 1981, the Pistons
drafted Indiana University (IU) point guard Isiah
Thomas, and the slow march to the top began. Near
the end of the 1980’s, the Pistons were legitimate ti-
tle contenders. After losing a seven-game series to
the Celtics in the 1987 Eastern Conference finals
and the Lakers in the 1988 NBA finals, the Pistons
swept the Lakers in four games in 1989 to capture
their first championship. The team repeated as
champions the following season.
Other NBA franchises staked a claim to the moni-
ker of dynasty, most notably the Philadelphia 76ers.
Julius “Dr. J.” Erving had won two American Basket-
ball Association (ABA) championships in the 1970’s
with the New York Nets. However, he struggled to
bring a championship to his NBA team, the 76ers.
Philadelphia reached the NBA finals in 1980 and
1982, losing both times to the Lakers. For the 1982-
1983 season, the 76ers added Moses Malone, an-
other ABA holdover and two-time NBA MVP.
Malone’s extra bulk in the middle of the floor helped
the team match up with Lakers’ center Abdul-Jabbar
and proved to be the missing piece in the champion-
ship puzzle. Philadelphia was dominant in the 1983
playoffs and swept the defending-champion Lakers
in four games.
The 1984 Draft In 1985, the NBA implemented the
draft lottery; thus, finishing last in the league did not
guarantee the first pick in the draft. The 1984 draft is
viewed as the finest collection of players to make the
transition from college to professional basketball. ItThe Eighties in America Basketball 95
Los Angeles Laker Magic Johnson seeks to pass over the head of
Boston Celtic Larry Bird. The Johnson-Bird rivalry helped draw
new fans to the sport and revitalized the NBA.(AP/Wide World
Photos)