Lakers Showtime Legend Reveals How Pat Riley’s Rage Fueled Team’s Vengeance After Memorial Day Massacre

Pat Riley’s Showtime Lakers were blown away by their heated rivals, the Boston Celtics, in Game 1 of the 1985 NBA Finals. The beatdown was so thorough that the 148-114 score could not tell the full dominance of Larry Bird and Co. To this day, the one-sided victory by the Celtics has been known as the Memorial Day Massacre.

Laker great Michael Cooper recalled how Riley galvanized the team after the humiliating loss. In an interview with Vlad TV on Sunday, Coop opened up about the legendary coach’s postgame talk:

“After that game, we watched that. Pat Riley told us, ‘We will never fu**ing…’ He punched that board and punched a hole in it. ‘We’ll never lose to this team again!’ And that set the stage for us.”

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Cooper said that before breaking the board with a punch, Riley made them watch Game 1 twice. Additionally, the master tactician replayed every mistake they committed three times. Cooper added that every one of them was embarrassed by what they saw. When the tension reached a boiling point, Riley vented his frustrations and anger on the hapless board.

Although Pat Riley did not hold back during his meeting with his players, he remained composed in front of the media. He told reporters after the game that if the LA Lakers went home with a split, “everybody will forget about this game.”

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Pat Riley guided Lakers to crucial Game 2 win

After the embarrassing Game 1 loss, Pat Riley and his boys were desperate to go home to LA with the series tied. Merely three days after the Memorial Day Massacre, Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Michael Cooper led the Lakers to a crucial 109-102 victory to even the series.

Jabbar delivered 30 points, 17 rebounds, eight assists and three blocks. After all the talks about “The Captain” being too old and too slow, he dominated Boston’s frontline of Bird, Robert Parish and Kevin McHale.

Johnson, who was called “Tragic Johnson” by Celtics fans since the 1984 NBA Finals, stepped up as well. He put up 14 points, 13 assists, four rebounds and three steals. Cooper, known more for his defense, contributed 22 points, five assists and four rebounds.

The Lakers took the series lead by dominating the Celtics in Game 3, 136-111. However, Pat Riley could not keep his promise as his team lost Game 4, 107-105. The Showtime Lakers eventually won the series 4-2, beating the Celtics for the first time in the NBA Finals.

Edited by Michael Macasero