The Cavaliers meet the Celtics in the 2018 Eastern Conference finals, the eighth playoff series between the two franchises. An appearance in the NBA Finals is at stake, which the winner of five of the previous seven series reached.
MORE: Eastern Conference finals preview
The underdog won two of those previous seven series between the teams, and pivotal moments for those franchises resulted from their playoff matchups. LeBron James, Larry Bird, Brad Daugherty and Kevin Garnett are just a few of the NBA greats that have made their mark when the two teams hooked up.
Cleveland beat Boston in five games in the last playoff series between the teams. Here's a look at those previous playoff series, which we ranked.
1. 2008 conference semifinals
Series: Boston wins 4-3
Series star: Boston's Kevin Garnett (19.6 ppg, 10.9 rpg)
Lowdown: The top-seeded Celtics took the Cavaliers' best shot thanks to a brilliant all-around performance from LeBron James, who averaged 26.7 points per game in the series. The home team won every game, and Game 7 was a thriller in which James scored 45 points and Paul Pierce scored 41 points. The Celtics won 97-92 and used that to propel a run to the NBA Finals, where they beat the Lakers in six games.
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2. 1976 conference finals
Series: Boston wins 4-2
Series star: Boston's Dave Cowens (18.0 ppg, 15.2 rpg)
Lowdown: The top two seeds in the East squared off, but what stands out is 11 different players averaged double figures in the series. Boston won the home games and closed out the Cavaliers on the road in Game 6. The Celtics went on to win the NBA Finals against Phoenix.
3. 2010 conference semifinals
Series: Boston wins 4-2
Series star: Boston's Rajon Rondo (20.2 ppg, 11.8 apg)
Lowdown: Top-seeded Cleveland took a 2-1 lead in the series after a 38-point effort from James in Game 3, but the Celtics roared back to take the next three games, and the image of James taking off his jersey in the tunnel foreshadowed his exit to Miami via "The Decision." That's why this series is so significant. The Celtics advanced to the NBA Finals, where they lost to the Lakers in seven games.
4. 1992 conference semifinals
Series: Cleveland wins 4-3
Series star: Cleveland's Brad Daugherty (22.6 ppg, 9.6 rpg)
Lowdown: This was Larry Bird's last playoff series, and he missed four games in the series because of injury. Reggie Lewis averaged 28.1 points per game for Boston, but it wasn't enough against a Cleveland team that featured Daugherty, Mark Price, Larry Nance and "Hot Rod" Williams. The third-seeded Cavaliers lost to the Bulls in six games in the Eastern Conference finals.
5. 2017 conference finals
Series: Cleveland wins 4-1
Series star: Cleveland's LeBron James (29.6 ppg., 6.4 rpg.)
Lowdown: The Cavs won the first two games on the road to take control of the series, but the Celtics take Game 3 when James scored just 11 points. Kyrie Irving (42 points) and James (34 points) combined for 76 points in Game 4, and the Cavs closed out the Celtics for a third straight trip to the NBA Finals in Game 5.
6. 1985 first round
Series: Boston wins 3-1
Series star: Boston's Larry Bird (34.7 ppg, 10.7 rpg)
Lowdown: Bird, the NBA MVP, dropped 40 on the Cavs in Game 1 as part of your run-of-the-mill first-round series. World B. Free scored 32 points to help Cleveland steal Game 3. The Celtics advanced to the NBA Finals, where they lost to the Lakers in six games.
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7. 2015 first round
Series: Cleveland wins 4-0
Series star: Cleveland's LeBron James (27.0 ppg, 9.0 rpg)
Lowdown: James led a sweep in his first series since returning to the Cavaliers, but the series is best known for the play in which Kelly Olynk grabbed Kevin Love's arm during a loose-ball situation. Love missed the remainder of the playoffs, and the Cavaliers lost the NBA Finals to the Golden State Warriors in six games.
