The 2009–10Boston Celtics season was the 64th season of the franchise in the
National Basketball Association (NBA). The Celtics finished with a record of 50–32, a 12 win drop off from the
previous season. They finished 1st in the Atlantic Division and 4th in the Eastern Conference.
In the
playoffs, the Celtics defeated the
Miami Heat in five games in the First Round, then defeated the top-seeded
Cleveland Cavaliers (in a rematch of the 2008 Conference semifinals) again in six games in the Semifinals, and finally, defeated the second-seeded
Orlando Magic (the runner-up of
last year's Finals as well as the team that defeated the Celtics in last season's Conference semifinals in seven games) in six games in the conference finals to advance to the
NBA Finals for the twenty-first time in franchise history.
The Celtics made it back to the NBA Finals after a one-year hiatus and played against the defending NBA champion and their
rival, the
Los Angeles Lakers for the 12th time. In a rematch of the
2008 NBA Finals, in which the Celtics defeated the Lakers in six games to capture their seventeenth championship, the Celtics were defeated this time by the Lakers in seven games.
April 27 – The Celtics won their series against the Miami Heat 4–1 and advanced to the
Eastern Conference semi-finals after a 96–86 win in Game 5.[4]
May 13 – The Celtics advanced to the
Eastern Conference finals after they won their series 4–2 against the Cleveland Cavaliers following a 94–85 win in Game 6.[5]
May 28 – The Celtics advanced to the
NBA Finals after they defeated the
Orlando Magic 96–84 in Game 6 to win the series 4–2.[6]
Rajon Rondo set two new single-season franchise records. On March 26, he grabbed his 168th steal of the season and broke
Rick Fox's record of 167 steals in a season with the
Boston Celtics. On April 2, he dished out his 716th assist of the season, thus breaking
Bob Cousy's franchise record of 715 assists made in a season. Rondo dished out 794 assists and stole the ball 189 times in the 2009–10 season.[14]
Milestones
On October 27, 2009 game against the
Cleveland CavaliersKevin Garnett passed Hall of Famer
Moses Malone for 21st place on the NBA's career blocking list, having blocked 1,736 shots.
On October 30, 2009 game against the
Chicago BullsRay Allen passed Hall of Famer
John Stockton for 33rd place on the NBA's career scoring list, having scored 19,715 points.[15]
On November 13, 2009 game against the
Atlanta Hawks Paul Pierce passed Hall of Famer
Bob McAdoo for 49th place on the NBA's career scoring list, having scored 18,790 points.
On November 18, 2009 game against the
Golden State Warriors Paul Pierce passed Hall of Famer
Isiah Thomas for 48th place on the NBA's career scoring list, having scored 18,824 points.
On November 20, 2009 game against the
Orlando Magic Paul Pierce passed
Chet Walker for 47th place on the NBA's career scoring list, having scored 18,845 points.
On November 25, 2009 game against the
Philadelphia 76ers Paul Pierce passed
Antoine Walker for 16th place on the NBA's career 3-pointer list with 1,389 3-pointers.
On December 1, 2009 game against the Charlotte Bobcats Paul Pierce passed
Scottie Pippen for 46th place on the NBA's career scoring list, having scored 18,946 points.
On December 8, 2009 game against the
Milwaukee Bucks Kevin Garnett passed Hall of Famer
Hal Greer for 25th place on the NBA's career scoring list, having scored 21,601 points, and
Micheal Ray Richardson for 36th place on career steal list with 1,465 steals.[16]
On December 10, 2009 game against the
Washington Wizards Paul Pierce passed
Brent Barry for 15th place on the NBA's career 3-pointer list with 1,397 3-pointers.
On December 12, 2009 game against the Chicago Bulls Paul Pierce passed
Dale Ellis and
Reggie Theus for 44th place on the NBA's career scoring list, having scored 19,016 points.
On December 18, 2009 game against the Philadelphia 76ers Kevin Garnett passed
Artis Gilmore for 20th place on the NBA's career blocking list, having blocked 1,751 shots.
On December 20, 2009 game against the
Minnesota Timberwolves Ray Allen passed
Tom Chambers for 32nd place on the NBA's career scoring list, having scored 20,059 points.[17]
On December 28, 2009 game against the Golden State Warriors Kevin Garnett passed
Kevin Willis for 21st place on the NBA's career rebounding list with 11,903 rebounds.
On January 8, 2010 game against the Atlanta Hawks Rasheed Wallace passed
Mark West for 33rd place on the NBA's career blocking list, having blocked 1,404 shots.
On January 13, 2010 game against the
Brooklyn Nets Paul Pierce passed Hall of Famer
Gail Goodrich for 43rd place on the NBA's career scoring list, having scored 19,191 points.
On January 14, 2010 game against the Chicago Bulls Paul Pierce passed
Eddie Johnson for 42nd place on the NBA's career scoring list, having scored 19,211 points.
On January 25, 2010 game against the
Los Angeles Clippers Paul Pierce passed Hall of Famer
Bob Lanier for 41st place on the NBA's career scoring list, having scored 19,257 points.
On February 1, 2010 game against the Washington Wizards Kevin Garnett passed Hall of Famer
Larry Bird for 24th place on the NBA's career scoring list, having scored 21,792 points and
Dennis Johnson for 35th place on the steals list with 1,478 steals.
On February 5, 2010 game against the Brooklyn Nets Kevin Garnett passed
Gary Payton for 23rd place on the NBA's career scoring list, having scored 21,816 points.
On February 7, 2010 game against the Orlando Magic Kevin Garnett passed
Dennis Rodman for 20th place on the NBA's career rebounding list with 11,960 rebounds.
On February 7, 2010 game against the Orlando Magic Paul Pierce passed
T. R. Dunn for 50th place on the NBA's career steals list with 1,318 steals.
On February 21, 2010 game against the
Denver Nuggets Kevin Garnett passed Hall of Famer
Elvin Hayes for 19th place on the NBA's career blocking list, having blocked 20,521 points.
On February 21, 2010 game against the Denver Nuggets Ray Allen passed
Mitch Richmond for 31st place on the NBA's career scoring list, having scored 20,510 points.
On February 23, 2010 game against the
New York Knicks Kevin Garnett became the 20th player in NBA history to reach 12,000 rebounds in his career.
On March 3, 2010 game against the Charlotte Bobcats Paul Pierce passed
Terry Cummings for 40th place on the NBA's career scoring list, having scored 19,482 points.
On March 10, 2010 game against the
Memphis Grizzlies Paul Pierce passed
Walter Davis for 39th place on the NBA's career scoring list, having scored 19,532 points.
On March 15, 2010 game against the
Detroit Pistons Ray Allen passed Hall of Famer
George Gervin for 31st place on the NBA's career scoring list, having scored 20,510 points (
Dirk Nowitzki has passed Ray Allen since February 21).
On March 17, 2010 game against the New York Knicks Paul Pierce passed
Clifford Robinson for 38th place on the NBA's career scoring list, having scored 19,614 points.
Injuries and surgeries
Kendrick Perkins tore two ligaments in his right knee in Game 6 of the NBA Finals and missed the rest of the playoffs[18]