1979 NBA playoffs

1979 NBA playoffs
DatesApril 10–June 1, 1979
Season1978–79
Teams12
ChampionsSeattle SuperSonics (1st title)
Runners-upWashington Bullets (4th finals appearance)
Semifinalists
← 1978
1980 →

The 1979 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association’s 1978–79 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Seattle SuperSonics defeating the Eastern Conference champion Washington Bullets 4 games to 1 in the NBA Finals. The Sonics earned their only NBA title. Dennis Johnson was named NBA Finals MVP.

The Finals was a rematch of 1978, in which Washington defeated Seattle 4–3. As of the 2021–22 season, this remains the last time the Bullets (now the Wizards) have advanced as far as the Conference Finals. They have the longest conference finals drought of any team in the four major professional sports in North America.

The Spurs made their first visit to the Conference Finals in these playoffs.

This was the first time that three of the former ABA teams made the playoffs, as it was the NBA playoff debut of the New Jersey Nets.

This was the first time both conference finals went to a deciding Game 7 since 1963 and the last until 2018.

Bracket

First Round Conference Semifinals Conference Finals NBA Finals
E1 Washington* 4
E4 Houston 0 E5 Atlanta 3
E5 Atlanta 2 Eastern ConferenceE1 Washington* 4
E2 San Antonio* 3
E3 Philadelphia 3
E3 Philadelphia 2 E2 San Antonio* 4
E6 New Jersey 0 E1 Washington* 1
W1 Seattle* 4
W1 Seattle* 4
W4 Denver 1 W5 Los Angeles 1
W5 Los Angeles 2 Western ConferenceW1 Seattle* 4
W3 Phoenix 3
W3 Phoenix 4
W3 Phoenix 2 W2 Kansas City* 1
W6 Portland 1
  • * Division winner
  • Bold Series winner
  • Italic Team with home-court advantage

First round

Eastern Conference first round

(3) Philadelphia 76ers vs. (6) New Jersey Nets

April 11
New Jersey Nets 114, Philadelphia 76ers 122
Scoring by quarter: 22–33, 23–22, 28–30, 41–37
Pts: John Williamson 38
Rebs: George Johnson 12
Asts: Eddie Jordan 9
Pts: Julius Erving 28
Rebs: Julius Erving 14
Asts: Henry Bibby 7
Philadelphia leads series, 1–0
Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Attendance: 8,846
Referees: Joe Gushue, Earl Strom, Jess Kersey
April 13
Philadelphia 76ers 111, New Jersey Nets 101
Scoring by quarter: 22–25, 29–20, 27–23, 33–33
Pts: Caldwell Jones 24
Rebs: Caldwell Jones 21
Asts: three players 5 each
Pts: Bernard King 27
Rebs: van Breda Kolff, Johnson 13 each
Asts: Eddie Jordan 8
Philadelphia wins series, 2–0
Rutgers Athletic Center, Piscataway, New Jersey
Attendance: 9,126
Referees: John Vanak, Ed Rush, Paul Mihalak

Game two was the only NBA playoff game at the Rutgers Athletic Center.

This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.

(4) Houston Rockets vs. (5) Atlanta Hawks

April 11
Atlanta Hawks 109, Houston Rockets 106
Scoring by quarter: 27–31, 23–26, 39–28, 20–21
Pts: Dan Roundfield 23
Rebs: Dan Roundfield 18
Asts: Hawes, Criss 4 each
Pts: Moses Malone 28
Rebs: Moses Malone 17
Asts: Slick Watts 7
Atlanta leads series, 1–0
The Summit, Houston, Texas
Attendance: 14,405
April 13
Houston Rockets 91, Atlanta Hawks 100
Scoring by quarter: 27–31, 31–21, 20–26, 13–22
Pts: Moses Malone 21
Rebs: Moses Malone 24
Asts: Calvin Murphy 4
Pts: Drew, Johnson 25 each
Rebs: John Drew 13
Asts: Eddie Johnson 8
Atlanta wins series, 2–0
Omni Coliseum, Atlanta, Georgia
Attendance: 15,798

This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Hawks winning the only previous meeting.

Western Conference first round

(3) Phoenix Suns vs. (6) Portland Trail Blazers

April 10
Portland Trail Blazers 103, Phoenix Suns 107
Scoring by quarter: 20–23, 26–25, 27–31, 30–28
Pts: Ron Brewer 26
Rebs: Thompson, Lucas 10 each
Asts: Lucas, Brewer 5 each
Pts: Paul Westphal 28
Rebs: Adams, Davis 5 each
Asts: Alvan Adams 9
Phoenix leads series, 1–0
April 13
Phoenix Suns 92, Portland Trail Blazers 96
Scoring by quarter: 24–25, 26–27, 26–21, 16–23
Pts: Walter Davis 31
Rebs: Gar Heard 9
Asts: Paul Westphal 6
Pts: Ron Brewer 21
Rebs: Mychal Thompson 17
Asts: Maurice Lucas 4
Series tied, 1–1
Memorial Coliseum, Portland, Oregon
Attendance: 12,666
Referees: Jack Madden, Lee Jones, Wally Rooney
April 15
Portland Trail Blazers 91, Phoenix Suns 101
Scoring by quarter: 22–24, 28–23, 26–21, 15–33
Pts: three players 16 each
Rebs: Maurice Lucas 16
Asts: Maurice Lucas 9
Pts: Paul Westphal 26
Rebs: Gar Heard 12
Asts: Walter Davis 8
Phoenix wins series, 2–1

This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.

(4) Denver Nuggets vs. (5) Los Angeles Lakers

April 10
Los Angeles Lakers 105, Denver Nuggets 119
Scoring by quarter: 26–29, 26–31, 28–31, 25–19
Pts: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 23
Rebs: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 12
Asts: Norm Nixon 11
Pts: Dan Issel 30
Rebs: Dan Issel 10
Asts: Bob Wilkerson 7
Denver leads series, 1–0
April 13
Denver Nuggets 109, Los Angeles Lakers 121
Scoring by quarter: 22–29, 25–20, 28–32, 34–40
Pts: David Thompson 29
Rebs: Tom Boswell 12
Asts: Tom Boswell 7
Pts: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 32
Rebs: Jamaal Wilkes 13
Asts: Norm Nixon 16
Series tied, 1–1
The Forum, Inglewood, California
Attendance: 14,182
April 15
Los Angeles Lakers 112, Denver Nuggets 111
Scoring by quarter: 31–28, 27–26, 27–32, 27–25
Pts: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 29
Rebs: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 16
Asts: Norm Nixon 12
Pts: David Thompson 28
Rebs: Dan Issel 10
Asts: David Thompson 7
Los Angeles wins series, 2–1

This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.

Conference semifinals

Eastern Conference semifinals

(1) Washington Bullets vs. (5) Atlanta Hawks

April 15
Atlanta Hawks 89, Washington Bullets 103
Scoring by quarter: 24–30, 22–16, 30–25, 13–32
Pts: Dan Roundfield 24
Rebs: Dan Roundfield 10
Asts: Armond Hill 7
Pts: Elvin Hayes 31
Rebs: Elvin Hayes 15
Asts: Larry Wright 6
Washington leads series, 1–0
April 17
Atlanta Hawks 107, Washington Bullets 99
Scoring by quarter: 24–24, 27–26, 26–28, 30–21
Pts: Roundfield, Johnson 17 each
Rebs: Tree Rollins 8
Asts: Armond Hill 6
Pts: Bob Dandridge 36
Rebs: Wes Unseld 10
Asts: Tom Henderson 8
Series tied, 1–1
April 20
Washington Bullets 89, Atlanta Hawks 77
Scoring by quarter: 16–17, 26–22, 19–22, 28–16
Pts: Elvin Hayes 19
Rebs: Wes Unseld 16
Asts: Wes Unseld 8
Pts: John Drew 13
Rebs: Roundfield, Rollins 14 each
Asts: Armond Hill 5
Washington leads series, 2–1
Omni Coliseum, Atlanta, Georgia
Attendance: 15,798
April 22
Washington Bullets 120, Atlanta Hawks 118 (OT)
Scoring by quarter: 29–30, 22–28, 27–23, 31–28, Overtime: 11–9
Pts: Elvin Hayes 29
Rebs: Elvin Hayes 17
Asts: Bob Dandridge 5
Pts: Dan Roundfield 22
Rebs: Dan Roundfield 18
Asts: Dan Roundfield 7
Washington leads series, 3–1
Omni Coliseum, Atlanta, Georgia
Attendance: 15,798
Referees: John Vanak, Joe Gushue, Bob Rakel
April 24
Atlanta Hawks 107, Washington Bullets 103
Scoring by quarter: 27–34, 29–21, 25–25, 26–23
Pts: Terry Furlow 21
Rebs: Dan Roundfield 14
Asts: Armond Hill 5
Pts: Elvin Hayes 26
Rebs: Elvin Hayes 14
Asts: Tom Henderson 11
Washington leads series, 3–2
April 26
Washington Bullets 86, Atlanta Hawks 104
Scoring by quarter: 23–29, 19–19, 24–30, 20–26
Pts: Elvin Hayes 24
Rebs: Wes Unseld 12
Asts: Wes Unseld 6
Pts: Drew, Johnson 22 each
Rebs: Steve Hawes 14
Asts: Armond Hill 9
Series tied, 3–3
Omni Coliseum, Atlanta, Georgia
Attendance: 15,978
April 29
Atlanta Hawks 94, Washington Bullets 100
Scoring by quarter: 26–26, 24–26, 19–23, 25–25
Pts: John Drew 24
Rebs: John Drew 8
Asts: Eddie Johnson 6
Pts: Elvin Hayes 39
Rebs: Elvin Hayes 15
Asts: Bob Dandridge 8
Washington wins series, 4–3
Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland
Attendance: 19,035
Referees: Darell Garretson, Joe Gushue, Hugh Evans

This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Wizards/Bullets winning two of the first three meetings.

(2) San Antonio Spurs vs. (3) Philadelphia 76ers

April 15
Philadelphia 76ers 106, San Antonio Spurs 119
Scoring by quarter: 22–31, 23–32, 25–25, 36–31
Pts: Darryl Dawkins 25
Rebs: Caldwell Jones 15
Asts: Julius Erving 7
Pts: Larry Kenon 30
Rebs: Billy Paultz 9
Asts: Silas, Bristow 7 each
San Antonio leads series, 1–0
April 17
Philadelphia 76ers 120, San Antonio Spurs 121
Scoring by quarter: 33–28, 23–35, 34–28, 30–30
Pts: Julius Erving 25
Rebs: Caldwell Jones 11
Asts: Henry Bibby 10
Pts: George Gervin 29
Rebs: Larry Kenon 7
Asts: Silas, Gale 8 each
San Antonio leads series, 2–0
April 20
San Antonio Spurs 115, Philadelphia 76ers 123
Scoring by quarter: 32–40, 25–23, 31–24, 27–36
Pts: James Silas 32
Rebs: Larry Kenon 15
Asts: Kenon, Gervin 5 each
Pts: Julius Erving 39
Rebs: Caldwell Jones 12
Asts: Maurice Cheeks 9
San Antonio leads series, 2–1
Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Attendance: 14,039
April 22
San Antonio Spurs 115, Philadelphia 76ers 112
Scoring by quarter: 32–22, 20–30, 30–28, 33–32
Pts: George Gervin 32
Rebs: Larry Kenon 9
Asts: Larry Kenon 6
Pts: Maurice Cheeks 33
Rebs: Steve Mix 9
Asts: Maurice Cheeks 9
San Antonio leads series, 3–1
Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Attendance: 11,163
Referees: Ed Middleton, Darell Garretson, Hugh Evans
April 26
Philadelphia 76ers 120, San Antonio Spurs 97
Scoring by quarter: 29–17, 21–21, 35–26, 35–33
Pts: Julius Erving 32
Rebs: Caldwell Jones 14
Asts: Maurice Cheeks 12
Pts: James Silas 19
Rebs: Larry Kenon 9
Asts: Silas, Gale 5 each
San Antonio leads series, 3–2
April 29
San Antonio Spurs 90, Philadelphia 76ers 92
Scoring by quarter: 27–25, 26–23, 19–13, 18–31
Pts: James Silas 27
Rebs: Larry Kenon 15
Asts: Mike Gale 6
Pts: Caldwell Jones 20
Rebs: Caldwell Jones 17
Asts: Maurice Cheeks 6
Series tied, 3–3
Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Attendance: 18,276
Referees: John Vanak, Jake O'Donnell, Paul Mihalak
May 2
Philadelphia 76ers 108, San Antonio Spurs 111
Scoring by quarter: 20–29, 27–27, 34–22, 27–33
Pts: Julius Erving 34
Rebs: Caldwell Jones 14
Asts: Maurice Cheeks 13
Pts: George Gervin 33
Rebs: George Gervin 12
Asts: Mark Olberding 7
San Antonio wins series, 4–3

This was the first meeting between these two teams.

Western Conference semifinals

(1) Seattle SuperSonics vs. (5) Los Angeles Lakers

April 17
Los Angeles Lakers 101, Seattle SuperSonics 112
Scoring by quarter: 29–22, 25–27, 22–32, 25–31
Pts: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 25
Rebs: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 11
Asts: Norm Nixon 7
Pts: Gus Williams 27
Rebs: Lonnie Shelton 12
Asts: John Johnson 9
Seattle leads series, 1–0
Kingdome, Seattle, Washington
Attendance: 26,377
April 18
Los Angeles Lakers 103, Seattle SuperSonics 108 (OT)
Scoring by quarter: 21–27, 32–21, 15–28, 27–19, Overtime: 8–13
Pts: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 31
Rebs: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 15
Asts: Norm Nixon 10
Pts: Gus Williams 38
Rebs: Jack Sikma 10
Asts: Jack Sikma 8
Seattle leads series, 2–0
Kingdome, Seattle, Washington
Attendance: 26,862
April 20
Seattle SuperSonics 112, Los Angeles Lakers 118 (OT)
Scoring by quarter: 29–26, 28–32, 28–27, 22–22, Overtime: 5–11
Pts: Gus Williams 29
Rebs: Paul Silas 13
Asts: Paul Silas 4
Pts: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 32
Rebs: Jamaal Wilkes 9
Asts: Norm Nixon 11
Seattle leads series, 2–1
The Forum, Inglewood, California
Attendance: 17,505
April 22
Seattle SuperSonics 117, Los Angeles Lakers 115
Scoring by quarter: 28–31, 33–29, 34–30, 22–25
Pts: Gus Williams 30
Rebs: D. Johnson, Sikma 11 each
Asts: Dennis Johnson 7
Pts: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 31
Rebs: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 13
Asts: Norm Nixon 19
Seattle leads series, 3–1
The Forum, Inglewood, California
Attendance: 15,724
April 25
Los Angeles Lakers 100, Seattle SuperSonics 106
Scoring by quarter: 28–24, 31–29, 22–29, 19–24
Pts: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 25
Rebs: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 14
Asts: Abdul-Jabbar, Nixon 8 each
Pts: Gus Williams 30
Rebs: Jack Sikma 10
Asts: Jack Sikma 6
Seattle wins series, 4–1
  • This would be the last playoff series for Los Angeles without Magic Johnson until 1992.

This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the SuperSonics winning the first meeting.

(2) Kansas City Kings vs. (3) Phoenix Suns

April 17
Kansas City Kings 99, Phoenix Suns 102
Scoring by quarter: 30–31, 28–18, 15–22, 26–31
Pts: Otis Birdsong 20
Rebs: Sam Lacey 12
Asts: Phil Ford 7
Pts: Paul Westphal 25
Rebs: Truck Robinson 12
Asts: Don Buse 5
Phoenix leads series, 1–0
April 20
Phoenix Suns 91, Kansas City Kings 111
Scoring by quarter: 21–35, 21–26, 28–26, 21–24
Pts: Truck Robinson 17
Rebs: Truck Robinson 13
Asts: Walter Davis 5
Pts: Otis Birdsong 23
Rebs: Scott Wedman 10
Asts: Phil Ford 9
Series tied, 1–1
April 22
Kansas City Kings 93, Phoenix Suns 108
Scoring by quarter: 24–27, 24–31, 21–32, 24–18
Pts: Wedman, Birdsong 22 each
Rebs: Bill Robinzine 10
Asts: three players 5 each
Pts: Walter Davis 22
Rebs: Alvan Adams 9
Asts: Walter Davis 7
Phoenix leads series, 2–1
April 25
Phoenix Suns 108, Kansas City Kings 94
Scoring by quarter: 25–25, 27–20, 26–29, 30–20
Pts: Paul Westphal 26
Rebs: Gar Heard 14
Asts: Alvan Adams 8
Pts: Scott Wedman 21
Rebs: Sam Lacey 13
Asts: Lacey, Ford 5 each
Phoenix leads series, 3–1
April 27
Kansas City Kings 99, Phoenix Suns 120
Scoring by quarter: 21–30, 25–40, 23–25, 30–25
Pts: Otis Birdsong 21
Rebs: Sam Lacey 10
Asts: Billy McKinney 7
Pts: Paul Westphal 32
Rebs: Joel Kramer 11
Asts: Bratz, Kramer 5 each
Phoenix wins series, 4–1
Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Phoenix, Arizona
Attendance: 12,660
Referees: Joe Gushue, Lee Jones, Jack Madden

This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.

Conference finals

Eastern Conference finals

(1) Washington Bullets vs. (2) San Antonio Spurs

May 4
San Antonio Spurs 118, Washington Bullets 97
Scoring by quarter: 30–27, 25–25, 31–23, 32–22
Pts: George Gervin 34
Rebs: Larry Kenon 21
Asts: James Silas 4
Pts: Bob Dandridge 25
Rebs: Elvin Hayes 20
Asts: Tom Henderson 5
San Antonio leads series, 1–0
May 6
San Antonio Spurs 95, Washington Bullets 115
Scoring by quarter: 27–22, 26–27, 20–33, 22–33
Pts: Larry Kenon 25
Rebs: Larry Kenon 8
Asts: Olberding, Dietrick 3 each
Pts: Wes Unseld 26
Rebs: Wes Unseld 22
Asts: Tom Henderson 9
Series tied, 1–1
May 9
Washington Bullets 114, San Antonio Spurs 116
Scoring by quarter: 31–32, 27–24, 26–33, 30–27
Pts: Bob Dandridge 28
Rebs: Elvin Hayes 23
Asts: Wes Unseld 8
Pts: George Gervin 29
Rebs: Billy Paultz 12
Asts: Kenon, Gale 5 each
San Antonio leads series, 2–1
May 11
Washington Bullets 102, San Antonio Spurs 118
Scoring by quarter: 19–24, 30–26, 23–34, 30–34
Pts: Elvin Hayes 23
Rebs: Wes Unseld 21
Asts: Bob Dandridge 9
Pts: George Gervin 42
Rebs: Larry Kenon 17
Asts: Silas, Gale 6 each
San Antonio leads series, 3–1
May 13
San Antonio Spurs 103, Washington Bullets 107
Scoring by quarter: 30–28, 18–25, 22–31, 33–23
Pts: George Gervin 28
Rebs: Mark Olberding 13
Asts: James Silas 6
Pts: Elvin Hayes 24
Rebs: Elvin Hayes 22
Asts: Tom Henderson 9
San Antonio leads series, 3–2
May 16
Washington Bullets 108, San Antonio Spurs 100
Scoring by quarter: 30–23, 24–26, 24–29, 30–22
Pts: Elvin Hayes 25
Rebs: Elvin Hayes 14
Asts: Dandridge, Henderson 8 each
Pts: George Gervin 20
Rebs: Larry Kenon 15
Asts: James Silas 7
Series tied, 3–3
May 18
San Antonio Spurs 105, Washington Bullets 107
Scoring by quarter: 21–18, 28–32, 33–26, 23–31
Pts: George Gervin 42
Rebs: Larry Kenon 11
Asts: James Silas 5
Pts: Bob Dandridge 37
Rebs: Elvin Hayes 15
Asts: Larry Wright 7
Washington wins series, 4–3
  • Bob Dandridge hits series-winning shot with 8 seconds remaining; Washington becomes the 3rd team in NBA history to overcome a 3–1 series deficit.

This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Bullets winning the first meeting.

Western Conference finals

(1) Seattle SuperSonics vs. (3) Phoenix Suns

May 1
Phoenix Suns 93, Seattle SuperSonics 108
Scoring by quarter: 22–28, 22–24, 22–29, 27–27
Pts: Alvan Adams 18
Rebs: Alvan Adams 12
Asts: Adams, Davis 4 each
Pts: Gus Williams 27
Rebs: Jack Sikma 11
Asts: John Johnson 9
Seattle leads series, 1–0
May 4
Phoenix Suns 97, Seattle SuperSonics 103
Scoring by quarter: 28–21, 21–26, 26–30, 22–26
Pts: Paul Westphal 29
Rebs: Truck Robinson 9
Asts: Buse, Davis 5 each
Pts: John Johnson 21
Rebs: Lonnie Shelton 15
Asts: Gus Williams 6
Seattle leads series, 2–0
Kingdome, Seattle, Washington
Attendance: 31,964
May 6
Seattle SuperSonics 103, Phoenix Suns 113
Scoring by quarter: 30–31, 31–29, 14–22, 28–31
Pts: Gus Williams 35
Rebs: J. Johnson, Sikma 9 each
Asts: Gus Williams 6
Pts: Paul Westphal 25
Rebs: Walter Davis 10
Asts: Paul Westphal 6
Seattle leads series, 2–1
Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Phoenix, Arizona
Attendance: 12,660
Referees: Darell Garretson, Bob Rakel, Dick Bavetta
May 8
Seattle SuperSonics 91, Phoenix Suns 100
Scoring by quarter: 24–31, 26–27, 27–23, 14–19
Pts: Gus Williams 22
Rebs: Lonnie Shelton 10
Asts: three players 3 each
Pts: Walter Davis 27
Rebs: Gar Heard 12
Asts: Paul Westphal 10
Series tied, 2–2
May 11
Phoenix Suns 99, Seattle SuperSonics 93
Scoring by quarter: 22–24, 19–22, 25–22, 33–25
Pts: Paul Westphal 27
Rebs: Truck Robinson 14
Asts: Paul Westphal 5
Pts: Dennis Johnson 24
Rebs: Jack Sikma 12
Asts: John Johnson 5
Phoenix leads series, 3–2
Kingdome, Seattle, Washington
Attendance: 28,935
May 13
Seattle SuperSonics 106, Phoenix Suns 105
Scoring by quarter: 27–33, 28–17, 22–35, 29–20
Pts: Dennis Johnson 23
Rebs: Jack Sikma 10
Asts: Dennis Johnson 6
Pts: Paul Westphal 29
Rebs: Joel Kramer 8
Asts: Paul Westphal 8
Series tied, 3–3

In a Mother's Day Thriller, The Game went down to the wire in intense fashion. The Sonics had just came back from a 8 point deficit in the 4th quarter & the score was 106-105 in favor of the Sonics with 52 Seconds to go in Regulation as the suns had the ball, In that Possession, Walter Davis appeared to have scored, but committed a traveling violation at 41 seconds. On The Next Play, Sonics Player Gus Williams' shot came up short, Phoenix grabbed the rebound and called timeout at 16 seconds left, With a chance to clinch their 2nd NBA Finals berth, Walter Davis' high-arc shot also came up short, the ball went out-of-bounds last touched by a Sonics' Player with one second left. The Suns had one last chance, Gar Heard's Potential game winning shot was an airball, meaning the SuperSonics forced a 7th game in Seattle on Thursday.

May 17
Phoenix Suns 110, Seattle SuperSonics 114
Scoring by quarter: 29–28, 24–29, 22–25, 35–32
Pts: Walter Davis 26
Rebs: Truck Robinson 14
Asts: Paul Westphal 9
Pts: Jack Sikma 33
Rebs: Jack Sikma 11
Asts: Fred Brown 5
Seattle wins series, 4–3
Kingdome, Seattle, Washington
Attendance: 37,552

With the score 112-104 in Favor of Seattle with just 20 seconds left, it appeared to be all over, but the Phoenix Suns would not quit easily. They immediately went on a 6-0 run in just 16 seconds, at the end of the run with 7 seconds to go, Paul Westphal stole an inbounds pass and then drove to the basket for a score, who was fouled by Wally Walker of the Sonics, making it just a 2 point game and sending Westphal to the line with just 4 seconds left, This allowed Suns Coach John MacLeod to call a timeout to decide what to do on the free throw attempt, The Suns elected to intentionally miss in hoping for an offensive rebound, but the rebound went to the Sonics' Jack Sikma, who then made both free throws to give the Sonics the Western Conference for the 2nd straight year.

This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Suns winning the only meeting.

NBA Finals: (E1) Washington Bullets vs. (W1) Seattle SuperSonics

May 20
Seattle SuperSonics 97, Washington Bullets 99
Scoring by quarter: 25–26, 25–33, 21–23, 26–17
Pts: Gus Williams 32
Rebs: John Johnson 11
Asts: Dennis Johnson 7
Pts: Larry Wright 26
Rebs: Wes Unseld 12
Asts: Tom Henderson 6
Washington leads series, 1–0
Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland
Attendance: 19,035
Referees: Darell Garretson, Ed T. Rush, Ed Middleton
  • Larry Wright makes the game winning free throws with one second remaining.
May 24
Seattle SuperSonics 92, Washington Bullets 82
Scoring by quarter: 28–23, 21–29, 19–14, 24–16
Pts: Gus Williams 23
Rebs: Jack Sikma 13
Asts: D. Johnson, J. Johnson 6 each
Pts: Bob Dandridge 21
Rebs: Elvin Hayes 14
Asts: Bob Dandridge 5
Series tied, 1–1
Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland
Attendance: 19,035
Referees: John Vanak, Jack Madden, Jim Capers
May 27
Washington Bullets 95, Seattle SuperSonics 105
Scoring by quarter: 25–31, 19–24, 22–26, 29–24
Pts: Bob Dandridge 28
Rebs: Unseld, Hayes 14 each
Asts: Bob Dandridge 5
Pts: Gus Williams 31
Rebs: Jack Sikma 17
Asts: Dennis Johnson 9
Seattle leads series, 2–1
Kingdome, Seattle, Washington
Attendance: 35,928
Referees: Jake O'Donnell, Joe Gushue, Hugh Evans
May 29
Washington Bullets 112, Seattle SuperSonics 114 (OT)
Scoring by quarter: 16–24, 37–28, 28–32, 23–20, Overtime: 8–10
Pts: three players 18
Rebs: Wes Unseld 16
Asts: Tom Henderson 8
Pts: Gus Williams 36
Rebs: Jack Sikma 17
Asts: John Johnson 13
Seattle leads series, 3–1
Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington
Attendance: 14,098
Referees: Bob Rakel, Lee Jones, Darell Garretson
June 1
Seattle SuperSonics 97, Washington Bullets 93
Scoring by quarter: 19–30, 24–21, 23–18, 31–24
Pts: Gus Williams 23
Rebs: Jack Sikma 17
Asts: John Johnson 6
Pts: Elvin Hayes 29
Rebs: Elvin Hayes 14
Asts: Bob Dandridge 7
Seattle wins series, 4–1
Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland
Attendance: 19,035
Referees: Jake O'Donnell, Joe Gushue, Paul Mihalak

This was the second Finals meeting between these two teams, with the Bullets winning the first meeting.


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