76ers–Celtics rivalry 76ers–Celtics rivalry The 76ers–Celtics rivalry is a National Basketball Association (NBA) rivalry between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Boston Celtics. The two teams have the most meetings in the NBA playoffs, playing each other in 21 series, with the Celtics winning 13 of them. The 76ers are considered to be the Celtics' second greatest rival, after the Los Angeles Lakers. The Syracuse Nationals and Boston Celtics played in the Eastern Division in the 1950s. The Nationals beat the Celtics in three straight playoff series in 1954, 1955, and 1956, winning the NBA Championship in 1955. After the 1956 season the
Celtics/Lakers: Best of Enemies from Minneapolis (where they had already won five Championships) in 1960. Lakers players featured included Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Jamaal Wilkes, Byron Scott, James Worthy, Kurt Rambis, and Bob McAdoo, along with the team's long time former general manager Jerry West and former coaches Paul Westhead and Pat Riley. The Celtics are represented by Bill Russell, Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, Danny Ainge, Cedric Maxwell, M.L. Carr, Quinn Buckner, and former coach K. C. Jones among others. Celtics/Lakers: Best of Enemies Celtics/Lakers: Best of Enemies is a 2017 documentary film about the history of the National Basketball Association (NBA) rivalry between