1987 Los Angeles Lakers

This was the most complete of the Showtime teams. The Lakers won 65 games, the most in franchise history to that point, and led the league in scoring while Pat Riley pushed the pace every night. Magic Johnson had taken full command of the offense as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, then 39, settled into a complementary role.

Johnson averaged 23.9 points and 12.2 assists and won his first MVP. James Worthy and Byron Scott gave the team two more scorers who could run, and Michael Cooper anchored the perimeter defense well enough to win Defensive Player of the Year. Mychal Thompson, acquired in February, gave Riley a second big man to throw at McHale.

The Finals were the third Lakers-Celtics meeting of the decade and the last until 2008. Los Angeles won the first two at home by a combined 41 points, then held off Boston in Game 4 when Johnson banked in his hook with two seconds left. They closed it out in Game 6 at the Forum.

The title was the Lakers' fourth of the 1980s. Johnson's Game 4 shot, taken over the two Celtics big men who had tormented him for years, became the signature image of the rivalry's final act.