Every 1985-86 NBA playoff series, three ways: the season race carried on into the postseason, who beat their seeding, and the bracket.
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The same race these clubs ran all season, carried on through the postseason on one scale and on real dates.
Where each club finished the season against how far it went, ranked on record rather than seed.
Who played whom, round by round, which no line chart can say.
Boston Celtics won the 1985-86 title from a regular season record of 67-15. 16 teams reached the playoffs and the bracket ran 4 rounds. Every series below is taken from NBA.com; nothing on this page is estimated.
| Round | Won by | Result | Opponent | Played |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First round | Boston Celtics | 3-0 in games | Chicago Bulls | April 17 to April 22, 1986 |
| First round | Los Angeles Lakers | 3-0 in games | San Antonio Spurs | April 17 to April 23, 1986 |
| First round | Milwaukee Bucks | 3-0 in games | New Jersey Nets | April 18 to April 22, 1986 |
| First round | Philadelphia 76ers | 3-2 in games | Washington Bullets | April 18 to April 27, 1986 |
| First round | Houston Rockets | 3-0 in games | Sacramento Kings | April 17 to April 22, 1986 |
| First round | Atlanta Hawks | 3-1 in games | Detroit Pistons | April 17 to April 25, 1986 |
| First round | Denver Nuggets | 3-1 in games | Portland Trail Blazers | April 18 to April 24, 1986 |
| First round | Dallas Mavericks | 3-1 in games | Utah Jazz | April 18 to April 25, 1986 |
| Conf. semifinals | Boston Celtics | 4-1 in games | Atlanta Hawks | April 27 to May 6, 1986 |
| Conf. semifinals | Los Angeles Lakers | 4-2 in games | Dallas Mavericks | April 27 to May 8, 1986 |
| Conf. semifinals | Milwaukee Bucks | 4-3 in games | Philadelphia 76ers | April 29 to May 11, 1986 |
| Conf. semifinals | Houston Rockets | 4-2 in games | Denver Nuggets | April 26 to May 8, 1986 |
| Conf. finals | Boston Celtics | 4-0 in games | Milwaukee Bucks | May 13 to May 18, 1986 |
| Conf. finals | Houston Rockets | 4-1 in games | Los Angeles Lakers | May 10 to May 21, 1986 |
| The Finals | Boston Celtics | 4-2 in games | Houston Rockets | May 26 to June 8, 1986 |
The left column ranks this field by regular season record, not by seed number: seeding rules differ by era, so this site uses records everywhere instead. The right column groups clubs by the round they went out in, which is not the same as the number of rounds they won, because a bye carries a club further without it winning anything. The figure beside a name is places moved between the two columns, and part of it is only where a club sat inside its band. Nothing here is a prediction. The data notes carry the whole method.