Celtics–Lakers rivalry to their NBA careers, and reignite the rivalry between the two storied franchises that they came to represent. The Celtics-Lakers rivalry was renewed in the 1980s, in large part due to the personal rivalry between Larry Bird and Magic Johnson. Magic said of the games against the Celtics, "when the new schedule would come out each year, I'd grab it and circle the Boston games. To me, it was "The Two" and the other 80." Similarly, Bird said that, "the first thing I would do every morning was look at the box scores to see what Magic did. I didn't
Celtics–Lakers rivalry was actually laid down in college basketball of the late 1970s. During the 1978–79 NCAA season, Michigan State was led by Magic Johnson to the championship game of the NCAA Tournament, where they faced Indiana State University, which was led by senior Larry Bird. In what was the most-watched college basketball game ever, Michigan State defeated Indiana State 75–64, and Johnson was voted Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four. Magic Johnson would go on to be drafted by the Lakers, and Larry Bird by the Celtics. The personal rivalry formed by these two basketball greats during college would transfer