Belt game 3,065 · April 5, 1981 · playoffs
Boston Celtics take the belt
Boston Celtics beat Chicago Bulls 121–109 at home to start reign 1,378 of the NBA belt, the 174th for the franchise.
Chicago Bulls had held it since March 17, 1981, with 8 defenses over 19 days.
Boston Celtics held it for 16 days and 3 defenses, then lost it to Philadelphia 76ers on April 21, 1981.
1,378Reign number
174Team's reign
3Defenses
16Days held
Box score
Boston Celtics
| Player | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | FG | 3P | FT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Larry Bird | 44 | 23 | 12 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 9-18 | 0-0 | 5-5 |
| Kevin McHale | 27 | 21 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 8-15 | 0-0 | 5-7 |
| Cedric Maxwell | 38 | 21 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 7-9 | 0-0 | 7-8 |
| Robert Parish | 24 | 17 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8-12 | 0-0 | 1-1 |
| Nate Archibald | 28 | 14 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 5-9 | 0-0 | 4-6 |
| Gerald Henderson | 20 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5-11 | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Chris Ford | 32 | 9 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4-5 | 1-2 | 0-0 |
| M.L. Carr | 16 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1-6 | 0-1 | 0-0 |
| Rick Robey | 9 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Terry Duerod | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Eric Fernsten | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 |
Chicago Bulls
| Player | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | FG | 3P | FT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dwight Jones | 41 | 19 | 9 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 7-15 | 0-0 | 5-5 |
| Artis Gilmore | 40 | 18 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 7-10 | 0-0 | 4-6 |
| David Greenwood | 28 | 14 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7-9 | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Reggie Theus | 36 | 13 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4-17 | 0-1 | 5-6 |
| Bob Wilkerson | 25 | 11 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4-11 | 0-0 | 3-3 |
| Ricky Sobers | 26 | 10 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 5-12 | 0-2 | 0-0 |
| Ronnie Lester | 11 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4-8 | 0-1 | 2-3 |
| Coby Dietrick | 15 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3-5 | 0-0 | 2-2 |
| Larry Kenon | 16 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2-7 | 0-0 | 2-3 |
| Sam Worthen | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| James Wilkes | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 |
Player box scores: Historical NBA Data and Player Box Scores by Eoin Moore (CC0).