The 1981 NBA playoffs were the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1980–81 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics defeating the Western Conference champion Houston Rockets 4 games to 2 in the NBA Finals. Cedric Maxwell was named NBA Finals MVP.
The playoffs are notable for being the third and final time to date that a team with a losing record advanced to the NBA Finals (the St. Louis Hawks did it first in 1957 with a 34–38 record, the Minneapolis Lakers did it in 1959 with a 33–39 record), as the Rockets won their first Western Conference title despite having a 40–42 record.
This was the only time in NBA history in which two teams with a losing record played each other in a Conference Finals, though the 1957 Western Division Finals did feature two teams with losing records. The Rockets and the Kansas City Kings, both with a 40–42 record, played in the Western Conference Finals which saw the Rockets prevail 4–1.
The Kings' playoff series victories over the Blazers and Suns were their last in Kansas City. Their last playoff series in Kansas City was a 3-game sweep in the first round in 1984 by the Lakers. They moved to Sacramento after the 1984–85 season and didn't win a playoff series representing northern California until 2001.
The Pacers became the last former ABA team to make their playoff debut, but were quickly swept by the 76ers 2–0.
This is the last year to date that an NBA playoff game was played in March.
The Celtics replicated their 1968 comeback by beating the Sixers in 7 after trailing 3–1. This is the only time a team came back from a 3–1 series deficit to win against the same team twice.
This was the last time the Los Angeles Lakers were not the number one seed in the Western Conference until 1991. It was also the only year in which the Lakers failed to win a playoff series with both Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on the team.
Bracket
First round
Eastern Conference first round
(3) Philadelphia 76ers vs. (6) Indiana Pacers
This was the first playoff meeting between the Pacers and the 76ers.
(4) New York Knicks vs. (5) Chicago Bulls
This was the first playoff meeting between the Bulls and the Knicks.
Western Conference first round
(3) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (6) Houston Rockets
This was the first playoff meeting between the Rockets and the Lakers.
(4) Portland Trail Blazers vs. (5) Kansas City Kings
This was the first playoff meeting between the Trail Blazers and the Kings.
Conference semifinals
Eastern Conference semifinals
(1) Boston Celtics vs. (5) Chicago Bulls
This was the first playoff meeting between the Celtics and the Bulls.
(2) Milwaukee Bucks vs. (3) Philadelphia 76ers
This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Bucks winning the first meeting.
Western Conference semifinals
This was the first time both conference semifinals went seven games. This would happen again in 1994 and in 2006.
(1) Phoenix Suns vs. (5) Kansas City Kings
The Kings became the 2nd NBA road team to win Game 7 after leading series 3–1 and the 1st #5 seed to eliminate #1 seed.
This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Suns winning the first two meetings.
(2) San Antonio Spurs vs. (6) Houston Rockets
This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Rockets winning the first meeting.
Conference finals
Eastern Conference finals
(1) Boston Celtics vs. (3) Philadelphia 76ers
John Hollinger of ESPN.com ranked this as the greatest playoff series in NBA history
This was the 16th playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Celtics winning eight of the first 15 meetings.
In Game 4, the Sixers led 93–86 midway through the fourth quarter, when Cedric Maxwell scored and drew the foul on Darryl Dawkins. He completed the three-point play. Larry Bird pushed the ball up court after a Sixers turnover. He pulled up and hit a mid-range shot to make it 93–91. Then after a Dawkins miss, Bird grabbed the rebound and threw a quick outlet pass that led to a fast-break layup to tie it at 93.