Belt game 1,861 · April 30, 1968 · playoffs
Boston Celtics take the belt
Boston Celtics beat Los Angeles Lakers 120–117 at home to start reign 837 of the NBA belt, the 131st for the franchise.
Los Angeles Lakers had held it since April 28, 1968, with 0 defenses over 2 days.
Boston Celtics held it for 182 days and 5 defenses, then lost it to Chicago Bulls on October 29, 1968.
837Reign number
131Team's reign
5Defenses
182Days held
Box score
Boston Celtics
| Player | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | FG | 3P | FT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Havlicek | 53 | 31 | 10 | 8 | — | — | 10-26 | — | 11-14 |
| Don Nelson | 43 | 26 | 12 | 4 | — | — | 11-20 | — | 4-6 |
| Bill Russell | 53 | 22 | 25 | 5 | — | — | 8-20 | — | 6-9 |
| Bailey Howell | 30 | 20 | 5 | 1 | — | — | 8-15 | — | 4-7 |
| Sam Jones | 39 | 16 | 3 | 3 | — | — | 6-14 | — | 4-5 |
| Larry Siegfried | 36 | 5 | 3 | 3 | — | — | 2-8 | — | 1-1 |
| Wayne Embry | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0-2 | — | 0-0 |
| Thomas Sanders | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 0-1 | — | 0-0 |
Los Angeles Lakers
| Player | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | FG | 3P | FT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jerry West | 41 | 35 | 4 | 6 | — | — | 14-24 | — | 7-8 |
| Elgin Baylor | 48 | 24 | 15 | 6 | — | — | 9-26 | — | 6-12 |
| Mel Counts | 29 | 20 | 14 | 3 | — | — | 9-14 | — | 2-2 |
| Archie Clark | 38 | 15 | 1 | 4 | — | — | 6-18 | — | 3-4 |
| Freddie Crawford | 24 | 8 | 4 | 0 | — | — | 4-7 | — | 0-0 |
| Darrall Imhoff | 24 | 7 | 8 | 0 | — | — | 2-5 | — | 3-3 |
| Tom Hawkins | 35 | 6 | 4 | 2 | — | — | 1-3 | — | 4-4 |
| Gail Goodrich | 8 | 2 | 2 | 1 | — | — | 0-3 | — | 2-2 |
| Erwin Mueller | 18 | 0 | 7 | 1 | — | — | 0-1 | — | 0-0 |
Player box scores: Historical NBA Data and Player Box Scores by Eoin Moore (CC0).