1979 NBA playoffs

American basketball tournament August 2023 NBA playoffs 1979 1978–79 April 10–June 1, 1979 12 Seattle SuperSonics 1 Washington Bullets Phoenix Suns San Antonio Spurs 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 2026, 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 Eastern Conference Western Conference E4 Houston 0 E5 Atlanta 2 E3 Philadelphia 2 E6 New Jersey 0 W4 Denver 1 W5 Los Angeles 2 W3 Phoenix 2 W6 Portland 1 E1 Washington* 4 E5 Atlanta 3 E3 Philadelphia 3 E2 San Antonio* 4 W1 Seattle* 4 W5 Los Angeles 1 W3 Phoenix 4 W2 Kansas City* 1 E1 Washington* 4 E2 San Antonio* 3 W1 Seattle* 4 W3 Phoenix 3 E1 Washington* 1 W1 Seattle* 4* 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 #eee April 11 Boxscore New Jersey Nets 114 Philadelphia 76ers 122 22–33 23–22 28–30 41–37 John Williamson 38 George Johnson 12 Eddie Jordan 9 Julius Erving 28 Julius Erving 14 Henry Bibby 7 Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 8,846 Joe Gushue, Earl Strom, Jess Kersey Philadelphia leads series, 1–0 April 13 Boxscore Philadelphia 76ers 111 New Jersey Nets 101 22–25 29–20 27–23 33–33 Caldwell Jones 24 Caldwell Jones 21 three players 5 each Bernard King 27 van Breda Kolff, Johnson 13 each Eddie Jordan 8 Rutgers Athletic Center, Piscataway, New Jersey 9,126 John Vanak, Ed Rush, Paul Mihalak Philadelphia wins series, 2–0 Game two was the only NBA playoff game at the Rutgers Athletic Center. This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.https://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=NJN&opp_id=PHI&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Brooklyn Nets versus Philadelphia 76ers (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021 (4) Houston Rockets vs. (5) Atlanta Hawks #eee April 11 Boxscore Atlanta Hawks 109 Houston Rockets 106 27–31 23–26 39–28 20–21 Dan Roundfield 23 Dan Roundfield 18 Hawes, Criss 4 each Moses Malone 28 Moses Malone 17 Slick Watts 7 The Summit, Houston, Texas 14,405 Atlanta leads series, 1–0 April 13 Boxscore Houston Rockets 91 Atlanta Hawks 100 27–31 31–21 20–26 13–22 Moses Malone 21 Moses Malone 24 Calvin Murphy 4 Drew, Johnson 25 each John Drew 13 Eddie Johnson 8 Omni Coliseum, Atlanta, Georgia 15,798 Atlanta wins series, 2–0 This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Hawks winning the only previous meeting. +Previous playoff serieshttps://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=ATL&opp_id=HOU&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Atlanta Hawks versus Houston Rockets (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021Atlanta/ St. Louis leads 1–0 in all-time playoff series#fff 1969 St. Louis Hawks 4 San Diego Rockets 2 1969 Western Division Semifinals Western Conference first round (3) Phoenix Suns vs. (6) Portland Trail Blazers #eee April 10 Boxscore Portland Trail Blazers 103 Phoenix Suns 107 20–23 26–25 27–31 30–28 Ron Brewer 26 Thompson, Lucas 10 each Lucas, Brewer 5 each Paul Westphal 28 Adams, Davis 5 each Alvan Adams 9 Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Phoenix, Arizona 12,660 Phoenix leads series, 1–0 April 13 Boxscore Phoenix Suns 92 Portland Trail Blazers 96 24–25 26–27 26–21 16–23 Walter Davis 31 Gar Heard 9 Paul Westphal 6 Ron Brewer 21 Mychal Thompson 17 Maurice Lucas 4 Memorial Coliseum, Portland, Oregon 12,666 Jack Madden, Lee Jones, Wally Rooney Series tied, 1–1 #eee April 15 Boxscore Portland Trail Blazers 91 Phoenix Suns 101 22–24 28–23 26–21 15–33 three players 16 each Maurice Lucas 16 Maurice Lucas 9 Paul Westphal 26 Gar Heard 12 Walter Davis 8 Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Phoenix, Arizona 12,660 Phoenix wins series, 2–1 This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.https://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=PHO&opp_id=POR&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Phoenix Suns versus Portland Trail Blazers (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021 (4) Denver Nuggets vs. (5) Los Angeles Lakers #eee April 10 Boxscore Los Angeles Lakers 105 Denver Nuggets 110 26–29 26–31 28–31 25–19 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 23 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 12 Norm Nixon 11 Dan Issel 30 Dan Issel 10 Bob Wilkerson 7 McNichols Sports Arena, Denver, Colorado 16,011 Denver leads series, 1–0 April 13 Boxscore Denver Nuggets 109 Los Angeles Lakers 121 22–29 25–20 28–32 34–40 David Thompson 29 Tom Boswell 12 Tom Boswell 7 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 32 Jamaal Wilkes 13 Norm Nixon 16 The Forum, Inglewood, California 14,182 Series tied, 1–1 #eee April 15 Boxscore Los Angeles Lakers 112 Denver Nuggets 111 31–28 27–26 27–32 27–25 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 29 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 16 Norm Nixon 12 David Thompson 28 Dan Issel 10 David Thompson 7 McNichols Sports Arena, Denver, Colorado 16,181 Los Angeles wins series, 2–1 This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.https://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=DEN&opp_id=LAL&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Denver Nuggets versus Los Angeles Lakers (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021 Conference semifinals Eastern Conference semifinals (1) Washington Bullets vs. (5) Atlanta Hawks #eee April 15 Boxscore Atlanta Hawks 89 Washington Bullets 103 24–30 22–16 30–25 13–32 Dan Roundfield 24 Dan Roundfield 10 Armond Hill 7 Elvin Hayes 31 Elvin Hayes 15 Larry Wright 6 Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 15,721 Washington leads series, 1–0 April 17 Boxscore Atlanta Hawks 107 Washington Bullets 99 24–24 27–26 26–28 30–21 Roundfield, Johnson 17 each Tree Rollins 8 Armond Hill 6 Bob Dandridge 36 Wes Unseld 10 Tom Henderson 8 Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 19,035 Series tied, 1–1 #eee April 20 Boxscore Washington Bullets 89 Atlanta Hawks 77 16–17 26–22 19–22 28–16 Elvin Hayes 19 Wes Unseld 16 Wes Unseld 8 John Drew 13 Roundfield, Rollins 14 each Armond Hill 5 Omni Coliseum, Atlanta, Georgia 15,798 Washington leads series, 2–1 April 22 Boxscore Washington Bullets 120 Atlanta Hawks 118 OT 29–30 22–28 27–23 31–28 11–9 Elvin Hayes 29 Elvin Hayes 17 Bob Dandridge 5 Dan Roundfield 22 Dan Roundfield 18 Dan Roundfield 7 Omni Coliseum, Atlanta, Georgia 15,798 John Vanak, Joe Gushue, Bob Rakel Washington leads series, 3–1 #eee April 24 Boxscore Atlanta Hawks 107 Washington Bullets 103 27–34 29–21 25–25 26–23 Terry Furlow 21 Dan Roundfield 14 Armond Hill 5 Elvin Hayes 26 Elvin Hayes 14 Tom Henderson 11 Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 19,035 Washington leads series, 3–2 April 26 Boxscore Washington Bullets 86 Atlanta Hawks 104 23–29 19–19 24–30 20–26 Elvin Hayes 24 Wes Unseld 12 Wes Unseld 6 Drew, Johnson 22 each Steve Hawes 14 Armond Hill 9 Omni Coliseum, Atlanta, Georgia 15,978 Series tied, 3–3 #eee April 29 Boxscore Atlanta Hawks 94 Washington Bullets 100 26–26 24–26 19–23 25–25 John Drew 24 John Drew 8 Eddie Johnson 6 Elvin Hayes 39 Elvin Hayes 15 Bob Dandridge 8 Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 19,035 Darell Garretson, Joe Gushue, Hugh Evans Washington wins series, 4–3 This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Wizards/Bullets winning two of the first three meetings. +Previous playoff serieshttps://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=ATL&opp_id=WAS&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Atlanta Hawks versus Washington Wizards (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021Washington/Baltimore leads 2–1 in all-time playoff series#fff 1965 St. Louis Hawks 1 Baltimore Bullets 3 1965 Western Division Semifinals #fff 1966 Baltimore Bullets 0 St. Louis Hawks 3 1966 Western Division Semifinals #fff 1978 Washington Bullets 2 Atlanta Hawks 0 1978 Eastern Conference First Round (2) San Antonio Spurs vs. (3) Philadelphia 76ers #eee April 15 Boxscore Philadelphia 76ers 106 San Antonio Spurs 119 22–31 23–32 25–25 36–31 Darryl Dawkins 25 Caldwell Jones 15 Julius Erving 7 Larry Kenon 30 Billy Paultz 9 Silas, Bristow 7 each HemisFair Arena, San Antonio, Texas 10,253 San Antonio leads series, 1–0 April 17 Boxscore Philadelphia 76ers 120 San Antonio Spurs 121 33–28 23–35 34–28 30–30 Julius Erving 25 Caldwell Jones 11 Henry Bibby 10 George Gervin 29 Larry Kenon 7 Silas, Gale 8 each HemisFair Arena, San Antonio, Texas 16,709 San Antonio leads series, 2–0 #eee April 20 Boxscore San Antonio Spurs 115 Philadelphia 76ers 123 32–40 25–23 31–24 27–36 James Silas 32 Larry Kenon 15 Kenon, Gervin 5 each Julius Erving 39 Caldwell Jones 12 Maurice Cheeks 9 Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 14,039 San Antonio leads series, 2–1 April 22 Boxscore San Antonio Spurs 115 Philadelphia 76ers 112 32–22 20–30 30–28 33–32 George Gervin 32 Larry Kenon 9 Larry Kenon 6 Maurice Cheeks 33 Steve Mix 9 Maurice Cheeks 9 Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 11,163 Ed Middleton, Darell Garretson, Hugh Evans San Antonio leads series, 3–1 #eee April 26 Boxscore Philadelphia 76ers 120 San Antonio Spurs 97 29–17 21–21 35–26 35–33 Julius Erving 32 Caldwell Jones 14 Maurice Cheeks 12 James Silas 19 Larry Kenon 9 Silas, Gale 5 each HemisFair Arena, San Antonio, Texas 16,055 San Antonio leads series, 3–2 April 29 Boxscore San Antonio Spurs 90 Philadelphia 76ers 92 27–25 26–23 19–13 18–31 James Silas 27 Larry Kenon 15 Mike Gale 6 Caldwell Jones 20 Caldwell Jones 17 Maurice Cheeks 6 Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 18,276 John Vanak, Jake O'Donnell, Paul Mihalak Series tied, 3–3 Maurice Cheeks hits game winning shot with 10 seconds remaining. #eee May 2 Boxscore Philadelphia 76ers 108 San Antonio Spurs 111 20–29 27–27 34–22 27–33 Julius Erving 34 Caldwell Jones 14 Maurice Cheeks 13 George Gervin 33 George Gervin 12 Mark Olberding 7 HemisFair Arena, San Antonio, Texas 16,055 San Antonio wins series, 4–3 This was the first meeting between these two teams.https://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=PHI&opp_id=SAS&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Philadelphia 76ers versus San Antonio Spurs (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021 Western Conference semifinals (1) Seattle SuperSonics vs. (5) Los Angeles Lakers #eee April 17 Boxscore Los Angeles Lakers 101 Seattle SuperSonics 112 29–22 25–27 22–32 25–31 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 25 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 11 Norm Nixon 7 Gus Williams 27 Lonnie Shelton 12 John Johnson 9 Kingdome, Seattle, Washington 26,377 Darell Garretson, Wally Rooney, Ed Rush Seattle leads series, 1–0 April 18 Boxscore Los Angeles Lakers 103 Seattle SuperSonics 108 OT 21–27 32–21 15–28 27–19 8–13 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 31 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 15 Norm Nixon 10 Gus Williams 38 Jack Sikma 10 Jack Sikma 8 Kingdome, Seattle, Washington 26,862 John Vanak, Jim Capers, Dick Bavetta Seattle leads series, 2–0 #eee April 20 Boxscore Seattle SuperSonics 112 Los Angeles Lakers 118 OT 29–26 28–32 28–27 22–22 5–11 Gus Williams 29 Paul Silas 13 Paul Silas 4 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 32 Jamaal Wilkes 9 Norm Nixon 11 The Forum, Inglewood, California 17,505 Jake O'Donnell, Paul Mihalak, Jess Kersey Seattle leads series, 2–1 April 22 Boxscore Seattle SuperSonics 117 Los Angeles Lakers 115 28–31 33–29 34–30 22–25 Gus Williams 30 D. Johnson, Sikma 11 each Dennis Johnson 7 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 31 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 13 Norm Nixon 19 The Forum, Inglewood, California 15,724 Jack Madden, Ed Rush, Tommy Nunez Seattle leads series, 3–1 #eee April 25 Boxscore Los Angeles Lakers 100 Seattle SuperSonics 106 28–24 31–29 22–29 19–24 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 25 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 14 Abdul-Jabbar, Nixon 8 each Gus Williams 30 Jack Sikma 10 Jack Sikma 6 Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington 14,098 Jake O'Donnell, Paul Mihalak, Lee Jones 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. +Previous playoff serieshttps://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=LAL&opp_id=OKC&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Los Angeles Lakers versus Oklahoma City Thunder (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021Seattle leads 1–0 in all-time playoff series#fff 1978 Los Angeles Lakers 1 Seattle SuperSonics 2 1978 Western Conference First Round (2) Kansas City Kings vs. (3) Phoenix Suns #eee April 17 Boxscore Kansas City Kings 99 Phoenix Suns 102 30–31 28–18 15–22 26–31 Otis Birdsong 20 Sam Lacey 12 Phil Ford 7 Paul Westphal 25 Truck Robinson 12 Don Buse 5 Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Phoenix, Arizona 12,660 Phoenix leads series, 1–0 April 20 Boxscore Phoenix Suns 91 Kansas City Kings 111 21–35 21–26 28–26 21–24 Truck Robinson 17 Truck Robinson 13 Walter Davis 5 Otis Birdsong 23 Scott Wedman 10 Phil Ford 9 Kemper Arena, Kansas City, Missouri 13,659 Series tied, 1–1 #eee April 22 Boxscore Kansas City Kings 93 Phoenix Suns 108 24–27 24–31 21–32 24–18 Wedman, Birdsong 22 each Bill Robinzine 10 three players 5 each Walter Davis 22 Alvan Adams 9 Walter Davis 7 Arizona State University Activity Center, Tempe, Arizona 14,301 Phoenix leads series, 2–1 April 25 Boxscore Phoenix Suns 108 Kansas City Kings 94 25–25 27–20 26–29 30–20 Paul Westphal 26 Gar Heard 14 Alvan Adams 8 Scott Wedman 21 Sam Lacey 13 Lacey, Ford 5 each Kemper Arena, Kansas City, Missouri 13,184 Phoenix leads series, 3–1 #eee April 27 Boxscore Kansas City Kings 99 Phoenix Suns 120 21–30 25–40 23–25 30–25 Otis Birdsong 21 Sam Lacey 10 Billy McKinney 7 Paul Westphal 32 Joel Kramer 11 Bratz, Kramer 5 each Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Phoenix, Arizona 12,660 Joe Gushue, Lee Jones, Jack Madden Phoenix wins series, 4–1 This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.https://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=PHO&opp_id=SAC&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Phoenix Suns versus Sacramento Kings (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021 Conference finals Eastern Conference finals (1) Washington Bullets vs. (2) San Antonio Spurs #eee May 4 Boxscore San Antonio Spurs 118 Washington Bullets 97 30–27 25–25 31–23 32–22 George Gervin 34 Larry Kenon 21 James Silas 4 Bob Dandridge 25 Elvin Hayes 20 Tom Henderson 5 Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 19,035 San Antonio leads series, 1–0 May 6 Boxscore San Antonio Spurs 95 Washington Bullets 115 27–22 26–27 20–33 22–33 Larry Kenon 25 Larry Kenon 8 Olberding, Dietrick 3 each Wes Unseld 26 Wes Unseld 22 Tom Henderson 9 Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 19,035 Series tied, 1–1 #eee May 9 Boxscore Washington Bullets 114 San Antonio Spurs 116 31–32 27–24 26–33 30–27 Bob Dandridge 28 Elvin Hayes 23 Wes Unseld 8 George Gervin 29 Billy Paultz 12 Kenon, Gale 5 each HemisFair Arena, San Antonio, Texas 15,318 San Antonio leads series, 2–1 May 11 Boxscore Washington Bullets 102 San Antonio Spurs 118 19–24 30–26 23–34 30–34 Elvin Hayes 23 Wes Unseld 21 Bob Dandridge 9 George Gervin 42 Larry Kenon 17 Silas, Gale 6 each HemisFair Arena, San Antonio, Texas 16,055 San Antonio leads series, 3–1 #eee May 13 Boxscore San Antonio Spurs 103 Washington Bullets 107 30–28 18–25 22–31 33–23 George Gervin 28 Mark Olberding 13 James Silas 6 Elvin Hayes 24 Elvin Hayes 22 Tom Henderson 9 Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 19,035 San Antonio leads series, 3–2 May 16 Boxscore Washington Bullets 108 San Antonio Spurs 100 30–23 24–26 24–29 30–22 Elvin Hayes 25 Elvin Hayes 14 Dandridge, Henderson 8 each George Gervin 20 Larry Kenon 15 James Silas 7 HemisFair Arena, San Antonio, Texas 16,055 Series tied, 3–3 #eee May 18 Boxscore San Antonio Spurs 105 Washington Bullets 107 21–18 28–32 33–26 23–31 George Gervin 42 Larry Kenon 11 James Silas 5 Bob Dandridge 37 Elvin Hayes 15 Larry Wright 7 Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 19,035 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. +Previous playoff serieshttps://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=SAS&opp_id=WAS&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — San Antonio Spurs versus Washington Wizards (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021Washington leads 1–0 in all-time playoff series#fff 1978 San Antonio Spurs 2 Washington Bullets 4 1978 Eastern Conference Semifinals Western Conference finals (1) Seattle SuperSonics vs. (3) Phoenix Suns #eee May 1 Boxscore Phoenix Suns 93 Seattle SuperSonics 108 22–28 22–24 22–29 27–27 Alvan Adams 18 Alvan Adams 12 Adams, Davis 4 each Gus Williams 27 Jack Sikma 11 John Johnson 9 Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington 14,098 Ed Rush, John Vanak, Jim Capers Seattle leads series, 1–0 May 4 Boxscore Phoenix Suns 97 Seattle SuperSonics 103 28–21 21–26 26–30 22–26 Paul Westphal 29 Truck Robinson 9 Buse, Davis 5 each John Johnson 21 Lonnie Shelton 15 Gus Williams 6 Kingdome, Seattle, Washington 31,964 Joe Gushue, Jack Madden, Ed Middleton Seattle leads series, 2–0 #eee May 6 Boxscore Seattle SuperSonics 103 Phoenix Suns 113 30–31 31–29 14–22 28–31 Gus Williams 35 J. Johnson, Sikma 9 each Gus Williams 6 Paul Westphal 25 Walter Davis 10 Paul Westphal 6 Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Phoenix, Arizona 12,660 Darell Garretson, Bob Rakel, Dick Bavetta Seattle leads series, 2–1 May 8 Boxscore Seattle SuperSonics 91 Phoenix Suns 100 24–31 26–27 27–23 14–19 Gus Williams 22 Lonnie Shelton 10 three players 3 each Walter Davis 27 Gar Heard 12 Paul Westphal 10 Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Phoenix, Arizona 12,660 Jake O'Donnell, Hugh Evans, Lee Jones Series tied, 2–2 #eee May 11 Boxscore Phoenix Suns 99 Seattle SuperSonics 93 22–24 19–22 25–22 33–25 Paul Westphal 27 Truck Robinson 14 Paul Westphal 5 Dennis Johnson 24 Jack Sikma 12 John Johnson 5 Kingdome, Seattle, Washington 28,935 Darell Garretson, Paul Mihalak, Wally Rooney Phoenix leads series, 3–2 May 13 Boxscore Seattle SuperSonics 106 Phoenix Suns 105 27–33 28–17 22–35 29–20 Dennis Johnson 23 Jack Sikma 10 Dennis Johnson 6 Paul Westphal 29 Joel Kramer 8 Paul Westphal 8 Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Phoenix, Arizona 12,660 Jack Madden, John Vanak, Jim Capers Series tied, 3–3In a Mother's Day thriller, the game went down to the wire in intense fashion. The Sonics had just come back from a 8-point deficit in the 4th quarter and were leading 106–105 with 52 seconds to go in regulation. In the Suns' possession, Walter Davis appeared to have scored, but committed a traveling violation with 41 seconds left. On the next play, Sonics player Gus Williams' shot came up short. Phoenix grabbed the rebound and called timeout with 16 seconds left, with a chance to clinch their 2nd NBA Finals berth. Walter Davis' high-arc shot also came up short, and the ball went out-of-bounds last touched by a Sonics' player with one second left. The Suns' last chance, Gar Heard's potential game-winning shot, was an airball, meaning the SuperSonics forced a 7th game in Seattle on Thursday. #eee May 17 Boxscore Phoenix Suns 110 Seattle SuperSonics 114 29–28 24–29 22–25 35–32 Walter Davis 26 Truck Robinson 14 Paul Westphal 9 Jack Sikma 33 Jack Sikma 11 Fred Brown 5 Kingdome, Seattle, Washington 37,552 Jake O'Donnell, Lee Jones, Joe Gushue Seattle wins series, 4–3 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. After the Suns scored 4 unanswered points, Paul Westphal stole an inbounds pass and drove to the basket for a score, getting fouled by Wally Walker. This made it a 2-point game and sent Westphal to the line with just 4 seconds left. Suns coach John MacLeod called a timeout to decide what to do on the free throw attempt. The Suns elected to intentionally miss and try to score off an offensive rebound, but the rebound went to the Sonics' Jack Sikma, who was intentionally fouled and 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 previous meeting. +Previous playoff serieshttps://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=OKC&opp_id=PHO&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Oklahoma City Thunder versus Phoenix Suns (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021 Phoenix leads 1–0 in all-time playoff series#fff 1976 Phoenix Suns 4 Seattle SuperSonics 2 1976 Western Conference Semifinals NBA Finals: (E1) Washington Bullets vs. (W1) Seattle SuperSonics 1979 NBA Finals #eee May 20 Boxscore Seattle SuperSonics 97 Washington Bullets 99 25–26 25–33 21–23 26–17 Gus Williams 32 Larry Wright 26 John Johnson 11 Wes Unseld 12 Dennis Johnson 7 Tom Henderson 6 Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 19,035 Darell Garretson, Ed T. Rush, Ed Middleton Washington leads series, 1–0 Larry Wright makes the game winning free throws with one second remaining. May 24 Boxscore Seattle SuperSonics 92 Washington Bullets 82 28–23 21–29 19–14 24–16 Gus Williams 23 Bob Dandridge 21 Jack Sikma 13 Elvin Hayes 14 D. Johnson, J. Johnson 6 each Bob Dandridge 5 Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 19,035 John Vanak, Jack Madden, Jim Capers Series tied, 1–1 #eee May 27 Boxscore Washington Bullets 95 Seattle SuperSonics 105 25–31 19–24 22–26 29–24 Bob Dandridge 28 Gus Williams 31 Unseld, Hayes 14 each Jack Sikma 17 Bob Dandridge 5 Dennis Johnson 9 Kingdome, Seattle, Washington 35,928 Jake O'Donnell, Joe Gushue, Hugh Evans Seattle leads series, 2–1 May 29 Boxscore Washington Bullets 112 Seattle SuperSonics 114 OT 16–24 37–28 28–32 23–20 8–10 three players 18 Gus Williams 36 Wes Unseld 16 Jack Sikma 17 Tom Henderson 8 John Johnson 13 Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington 14,098 Bob Rakel, Lee Jones, Darell Garretson Seattle leads series, 3–1 Dennis Johnson blocks Kevin Grevey with 4 seconds left to seal it. #eee June 1 Boxscore Seattle SuperSonics 97 Washington Bullets 93 19–30 24–21 23–18 31–24 Gus Williams 23 Elvin Hayes 29 Jack Sikma 17 Elvin Hayes 14 John Johnson 6 Bob Dandridge 7 Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 19,035 Jake O'Donnell, Joe Gushue, Paul Mihalak Seattle wins series, 4–1 This was the second Finals meeting between these two teams, with the Bullets winning the first meeting. +Previous playoff serieshttps://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=OKC&opp_id=WAS&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Oklahoma City Thunder versus Washington Wizards (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021Washington leads 1–0 in all-time playoff series#fff 1978 Seattle SuperSonics 3 Washington Bullets 4 1978 NBA Finals References External links Basketball-Reference.com's 1979 NBA Playoffs page Category:NBA playoffs Playoffs Category:Sports in Portland, Oregon fi:NBA-kausi 1978–1979#Pudotuspelit