1978 NBA playoffs

Postseason tournament August 2023 NBA playoffs 1978 1977–78 April 11–June 7, 1978 12 Washington Bullets 1 Seattle SuperSonics Denver Nuggets Philadelphia 76ers 1977 1979 The 1978 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1977-78 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Conference champion Washington Bullets defeating the Western Conference champion Seattle SuperSonics 4 games to 3 in the NBA Finals. Wes Unseld was named NBA Finals MVP. To date, it remains the only NBA title that the Bullets (since renamed the Wizards) have won. It was the third NBA Finals appearance and first title for the Bullets, founded in 1961. The Sonics made the Finals for the first time in their 11-year existence. This would be the first of two straight meetings in the Finals between the Bullets and Sonics, with Seattle winning the title the next year. This was the first time since the expansion of the playoff field to 10 teams in 1975 that neither conference champion had the benefit of a first-round bye by being one of the top two teams in the conference during the regular season. The 1979 Finals rematch between the Sonics and Bullets took place with both teams as the #1 seed in their respective conference. The Denver Nuggets, one of the four former American Basketball Association teams to join the NBA the previous season, became the first of them to win an NBA playoff series, defeating the Milwaukee Bucks in a 7-game conference semifinal. Bracket First Round Conference Semifinals Conference Finals NBA Finals Eastern Conference Western Conference E4 Cleveland 0 E5 New York 2 E3 Washington 2 E6 Atlanta 0 W4 Seattle 2 W5 Los Angeles 1 W3 Phoenix 0 W6 Milwaukee 2 E1 Philadelphia* 4 E5 New York 0 E3 Washington 4 E2 San Antonio* 2 W1 Portland* 2 W4 Seattle 4 W6 Milwaukee 3 W2 Denver* 4 E1 Philadelphia* 2 E3 Washington 4 W4 Seattle 4 W2 Denver* 2 E3 Washington 4 W4 Seattle 3* Division winner Bold Series winner Italic Team with home-court advantage First round Eastern Conference first round (3) Washington Bullets vs. (6) Atlanta Hawks #eee April 12 Boxscore Atlanta Hawks 94 Washington Bullets 103 25–25 23–31 23–25 23–22 John Drew 25 Tom McMillen 14 Eddie Johnson 4 Bob Dandridge 20 Wes Unseld 15 Wes Unseld 7 Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 9,326 Washington leads series, 1–0 April 14 Boxscore Washington Bullets 107 Atlanta Hawks 103 OT 25–26 23–20 30–24 17–25 12–8 Kevin Grevey 41 Wes Unseld 15 Tom Henderson 5 John Drew 27 Drew, McMillen 8 each Hill, Hawes 5 each Omni Coliseum, Atlanta, Georgia 15,601 Washington wins series, 2–0 This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams, with both teams split the first two meetings while both teams were in Baltimore and St. Louis respectively. +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, 2021Tied 1–1 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 (4) Cleveland Cavaliers vs. (5) New York Knicks #eee April 12 Boxscore New York Knicks 132 Cleveland Cavaliers 114 32–31 31–28 36–31 33–24 Bob McAdoo 41 Spencer Haywood 8 Ray Williams 6 Campy Russell 23 Elmore Smith 12 Foots Walker 6 Richfield Coliseum, Richfield, Ohio 19,739 New York leads series, 1–0 April 14 Boxscore Cleveland Cavaliers 107 New York Knicks 109 29–26 27–20 25–31 26–32 Campy Russell 32 Campy Russell 8 Campy Russell 6 McAdoo, Haywood 27 each Bob McAdoo 12 Ray Williams 10 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York 18,965 New York wins series, 2–0 This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.https://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=CLE&opp_id=NYK&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Cleveland Cavaliers versus New York Knicks (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021 Western Conference first round (3) Phoenix Suns vs. (6) Milwaukee Bucks #eee April 11 Boxscore Milwaukee Bucks 111 Phoenix Suns 103 24–31 26–24 29–28 32–20 Brian Winters 31 Marques Johnson 16 Quinn Buckner 8 Walter Davis 31 Alvan Adams 9 Paul Westphal 9 Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Phoenix, Arizona 12,161 Milwaukee leads series, 1–0 April 14 Boxscore Phoenix Suns 90 Milwaukee Bucks 94 36–25 16–24 17–22 21–23 Paul Westphal 32 Walter Davis 9 Paul Westphal 10 Marques Johnson 33 Dave Meyers 14 Quinn Buckner 10 MECCA Arena, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 10,938 Milwaukee wins series, 2–0 This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.https://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=MIL&opp_id=PHO&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Milwaukee Bucks versus Phoenix Suns (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021 (4) Seattle SuperSonics vs. (5) Los Angeles Lakers #eee April 12 Boxscore Los Angeles Lakers 90 Seattle SuperSonics 102 23–22 24–25 21–24 22–31 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 26 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 12 Nixon, Scott 6 each Gus Williams 23 Marvin Webster 14 Fred Brown 5 Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington 14,098 Seattle leads series, 1–0 April 14 Boxscore Seattle SuperSonics 99 Los Angeles Lakers 105 26–23 27–26 21–26 25–30 Dennis Johnson 21 Marvin Webster 10 Sikma, Williams 4 each Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 24 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 18 Adrian Dantley 6 The Forum, Inglewood, California 15,051 Series tied, 1–1 #eee April 16 Boxscore Los Angeles Lakers 102 Seattle SuperSonics 111 24–26 26–33 28–32 24–20 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 31 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 11 Norm Nixon 5 Jack Sikma 24 Marvin Webster 18 Gus Williams 8 Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington 14,098 Seattle 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=LAL&opp_id=OKC&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Los Angeles Lakers versus Oklahoma City Thunder (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021 Conference semifinals Eastern Conference semifinals (1) Philadelphia 76ers vs. (5) New York Knicks #eee April 16 Boxscore New York Knicks 90 Philadelphia 76ers 130 20–28 26–33 22–28 22–41 Ray Williams 24 Bob McAdoo 13 Bob McAdoo 6 Steve Mix 19 Caldwell Jones 16 Steve Mix 7 Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 13,011 Philadelphia leads series, 1–0 April 18 Boxscore New York Knicks 100 Philadelphia 76ers 119 28–26 24–36 18–26 30–31 Ray Williams 24 three players 6 each Bob McAdoo 6 Julius Erving 22 Caldwell Jones 11 Darryl Dawkins 6 Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 15,853 Philadelphia leads series, 2–0 #eee April 20 Boxscore Philadelphia 76ers 137 New York Knicks 126 37–30 35–35 31–28 34–33 McGinnis, Free 29 each Julius Erving 10 Collins, Erving 7 each Bob McAdoo 29 Lonnie Shelton 14 Butch Beard 8 Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York 18,697 Philadelphia leads series, 3–0 April 23 Boxscore Philadelphia 76ers 112 New York Knicks 107 25–30 32–29 26–24 29–24 Doug Collins 24 Caldwell Jones 14 Collins, Erving 4 each Bob McAdoo 24 Bob McAdoo 14 McAdoo, Williams 4 each Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York 16,307 Philadelphia wins series, 4–0 This was the seventh playoff meeting between these two teams, with the 76ers winning four of the first six meetings. +Previous playoff serieshttps://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=NYK&opp_id=PHI&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — New York Knicks versus Philadelphia 76ers (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021Philadelphia leads 4–2 in all-time playoff series#fff 1950 New York Knicks 1 Syracuse Nationals 2 1950 Eastern Division Finals #fff 1951 New York Knicks 3 Syracuse Nationals 2 1951 Eastern Division Finals #fff 1952 New York Knicks 3 Syracuse Nationals 1 1952 Eastern Division Finals #fff 1954 New York Knicks 0 Syracuse Nationals 2 1954 Eastern Division Round Robin semifinals #fff 1959 New York Knicks 0 Syracuse Nationals 2 1959 Eastern Division Semifinals #fff 1968 New York Knicks 2 Philadelphia 76ers 4 1968 Eastern Division Semifinals (2) San Antonio Spurs vs. (3) Washington Bullets #eee April 16 Boxscore Washington Bullets 103 San Antonio Spurs 114 29–25 20–23 27–34 27–32 Elvin Hayes 26 Elvin Hayes 15 Elvin Hayes 6 George Gervin 35 Larry Kenon 9 Gervin, Kenon 5 each HemisFair Arena, San Antonio, Texas 9,669 Don Murphy, John Vanak San Antonio leads series, 1–0 April 18 Boxscore Washington Bullets 121 San Antonio Spurs 117 33–27 32–28 35–28 21–34 Kevin Grevey 31 Wes Unseld 13 Larry Wright 8 George Gervin 46 Larry Kenon 8 Larry Kenon 6 HemisFair Arena, San Antonio, Texas 9,871 Bob Rakel, Earl Strom Series tied, 1–1 #eee April 21 Boxscore San Antonio Spurs 105 Washington Bullets 118 26–38 24–25 24–30 31–25 George Gervin 33 Larry Kenon 9 Larry Kenon 4 Bob Dandridge 28 Elvin Hayes 12 Wes Unseld 8 Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 17,417 Darell Garretson, Joe Gushue Washington leads series, 2–1 April 23 Boxscore San Antonio Spurs 95 Washington Bullets 98 24–18 23–25 24–27 24–28 George Gervin 35 Billy Paultz 8 Mike Gale 7 Bob Dandridge 24 Elvin Hayes 13 Bob Dandridge 8 Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 13,459 Ed Middleton, Jake O'Donnell Washington leads series, 3–1 #eee April 25 Boxscore Washington Bullets 105 San Antonio Spurs 116 27–33 28–24 19–26 31–33 Charles Johnson 21 Elvin Hayes 13 Wes Unseld 6 George Gervin 27 Larry Kenon 14 Louie Dampier 6 HemisFair Arena, San Antonio, Texas 9,709 Jack Madden, John Vanak Washington leads series, 3–2 April 28 Boxscore San Antonio Spurs 100 Washington Bullets 103 29–25 23–33 22–19 26–26 Mark Olberding 24 Green, Paultz 9 each Mike Gale 9 Elvin Hayes 25 Wes Unseld 16 Wes Unseld 5 Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 19,035 Paul Mihalak, Richie Powers Washington wins series, 4–2 This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.https://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, 2021 Western Conference semifinals (1) Portland Trail Blazers vs. (4) Seattle SuperSonics #eee April 18 Boxscore Seattle SuperSonics 104 Portland Trail Blazers 95 23–34 23–19 33–22 25–20 Marvin Webster 24 Jack Sikma 11 Dennis Johnson 4 Johnny Davis 20 Bill Walton 16 Lionel Hollins 9 Memorial Coliseum, Portland, Oregon 12,666 Seattle leads series, 1–0 April 21 Boxscore Seattle SuperSonics 93 Portland Trail Blazers 96 30–20 19–20 22–30 22–26 Gus Williams 31 Marvin Webster 15 Marvin Webster 7 Maurice Lucas 19 Maurice Lucas 14 Lionel Hollins 5 Memorial Coliseum, Portland, Oregon 12,666 Series tied, 1–1 This was Bill Walton's final game in a Portland Trail Blazer uniform as X-rays done after the game showed that his navicular bone below Walton's left ankle was broken. #eee April 23 Boxscore Portland Trail Blazers 84 Seattle SuperSonics 99 25–20 18–24 19–27 22–28 Tom Owens 24 Owens, Lucas 9 each Dave Twardzik 5 J. Johnson, Brown 18 each Marvin Webster 23 Fred Brown 4 Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington 14,098 Seattle leads series, 2–1 April 26 Boxscore Portland Trail Blazers 98 Seattle SuperSonics 100 28–28 29–17 24–28 17–27 Lionel Hollins 35 Maurice Lucas 16 Tom Owens 8 Jack Sikma 28 Jack Sikma 10 Dennis Johnson 8 Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington 14,098 Seattle leads series, 3–1 #eee April 30 Boxscore Seattle SuperSonics 89 Portland Trail Blazers 113 13–25 21–27 23–27 32–34 Marvin Webster 16 Paul Silas 10 Gus Williams 4 Tom Owens 31 Maurice Lucas 13 Davis, Owens 6 each Memorial Coliseum, Portland, Oregon 12,666 Seattle leads series, 3–2 May 1 Boxscore Portland Trail Blazers 94 Seattle SuperSonics 105 22–26 27–29 20–20 25–30 Johnny Davis 23 Maurice Lucas 12 Lionel Hollins 9 Dennis Johnson 20 Marvin Webster 11 Gus Williams 7 Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington 14,098 Seattle wins series, 4–2 This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.https://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=OKC&opp_id=POR&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Oklahoma City Thunder versus Portland Trail Blazers (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021 (2) Denver Nuggets vs. (6) Milwaukee Bucks #eee April 18 Boxscore Milwaukee Bucks 103 Denver Nuggets 119 28–34 34–29 20–28 21–28 Alex English 26 Dave Meyers 15 Brian Winters 11 David Thompson 27 Dan Issel 12 David Thompson 6 McNichols Sports Arena, Denver, Colorado 17,297 Denver leads series, 1–0 April 21 Boxscore Milwaukee Bucks 111 Denver Nuggets 127 35–32 18–31 23–39 35–25 Marques Johnson 22 Johnson, Meyers 5 each Lloyd Walton 8 Dan Issel 22 Dan Issel 14 Issel, Calvin 6 each McNichols Sports Arena, Denver, Colorado 17,838 Denver leads series, 2–0 #eee April 23 Boxscore Denver Nuggets 112 Milwaukee Bucks 143 22–26 28–30 26–40 36–47 three players 16 each Anthony Roberts 8 David Thompson 5 Marques Johnson 35 Marques Johnson 10 Lloyd Walton 11 MECCA Arena, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 10,938 Denver leads series, 2–1 April 25 Boxscore Denver Nuggets 118 Milwaukee Bucks 104 27–22 30–17 33–22 28–43 David Thompson 34 Dan Issel 14 Wilkerson, Simpson 5 each Johnson, Winters 14 each Marques Johnson 7 Brian Winters 6 MECCA Arena, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 10,938 Denver leads series, 3–1 #eee April 28 Boxscore Milwaukee Bucks 117 Denver Nuggets 112 31–28 19–26 28–32 39–26 Marques Johnson 34 Marques Johnson 17 Winters, Buckner 9 each Bobby Jones 25 Dan Issel 15 Bob Wilkerson 8 McNichols Sports Arena, Denver, Colorado 17,838 Denver leads series, 3–2 April 30 Boxscore Denver Nuggets 91 Milwaukee Bucks 119 26–33 21–29 20–30 24–27 David Thompson 28 Bobby Jones 10 Bob Wilkerson 6 Alex English 21 Marques Johnson 17 Marques Johnson 9 MECCA Arena, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 10,938 Series tied, 3–3 #eee May 3 Boxscore Milwaukee Bucks 110 Denver Nuggets 116 26–34 30–32 25–29 29–21 Brian Winters 27 Marques Johnson 16 Quinn Buckner 10 David Thompson 37 Bob Wilkerson 12 David Thompson 6 McNichols Sports Arena, Denver, Colorado 17,838 Denver wins series, 4–3 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=MIL&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Denver Nuggets versus Milwaukee Bucks (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021 Conference finals Eastern Conference finals (1) Philadelphia 76ers vs. (3) Washington Bullets #eee April 30 Boxscore Washington Bullets 122 Philadelphia 76ers 117 OT 26–19 21–28 30–34 32–28 13–8 Elvin Hayes 28 Elvin Hayes 18 Tom Henderson 9 Julius Erving 25 George McGinnis 15 three players 5 each Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 13,708 High Evans, Earl Strom Washington leads series, 1–0 After a jump ball with three seconds left, Doug Collins hits the game-tying shot at the buzzer to send it to OT. Wes Unseld is injured and misses the next three games of the series. May 3 Boxscore Washington Bullets 104 Philadelphia 76ers 110 26–28 28–24 22–32 28–26 Elvin Hayes 26 Elvin Hayes 15 Wright, Henderson 8 each Doug Collins 28 Erving, Dawkins 11 each Henry Bibby 9 Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 18,276 Jack Madden, John Vanak Series tied, 1–1 #eee May 5 Boxscore Philadelphia 76ers 108 Washington Bullets 123 26–28 19–34 36–30 27–31 George McGinnis 16 Julius Erving 10 Henry Bibby 5 Bob Dandridge 30 Elvin Hayes 12 Bob Dandridge 7 Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 19,035 Joe Gushue, Paul Mihalak Washington leads series, 2–1 May 7 Boxscore Philadelphia 76ers 105 Washington Bullets 121 28–23 20–31 26–27 31–40 Julius Erving 24 Caldwell Jones 13 World B. Free 6 Elvin Hayes 35 Elvin Hayes 19 four players 6 each Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 19,035 Jim Capers, Jake O'Donnell Washington leads series, 3–1 Wes Unseld returns to the lineup. #eee May 10 Boxscore Washington Bullets 94 Philadelphia 76ers 107 12–23 29–29 21–30 32–25 Larry Wright 18 Hayes, Unseld 16 each Wes Unseld 5 Collins, Erving 24 each Caldwell Jones 15 Henry Bibby 10 Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 18,276 Darell Garretson, Don Murphy Washington leads series, 3–2 May 12 Boxscore Philadelphia 76ers 99 Washington Bullets 101 27–24 23–27 26–33 23–17 Doug Collins 33 Erving, McGinnis 8 each Henry Bibby 5 Bob Dandridge 28 Wes Unseld 15 Tom Henderson 6 Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 19,035 Earl Strom, John Vanak Washington wins series, 4–2 This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Bullets winning the first meeting while in Baltimore. +Previous playoff serieshttps://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=PHI&opp_id=WAS&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Philadelphia 76ers versus Washington Wizards (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021Baltimore/Washington leads 1–0 in all-time playoff series#fff 1971 Philadelphia 76ers 3 Baltimore Bullets 4 1971 Eastern Conference Semifinals Western Conference finals (2) Denver Nuggets vs. (4) Seattle SuperSonics #eee May 5 Boxscore Seattle SuperSonics 107 Denver Nuggets 116 27–30 23–27 27–23 30–36 Marvin Webster 28 Marvin Webster 16 Gus Williams 8 Dan Issel 25 Issel, Hillman 11 each Bob Wilkerson 10 McNichols Sports Arena, Denver, Colorado 17,387 Denver leads series, 1–0 May 7 Boxscore Seattle SuperSonics 121 Denver Nuggets 111 30–38 31–18 22–25 38–30 Fred Brown 26 Paul Silas 12 Fred Brown 6 Dan Issel 29 Dan Issel 14 Ralph Simpson 7 McNichols Sports Arena, Denver, Colorado 17,838 Series tied, 1–1 #eee May 10 Boxscore Denver Nuggets 91 Seattle SuperSonics 105 30–30 20–31 24–16 17–28 David Thompson 21 Anthony Roberts 8 Jones, Webster 3 each John Johnson 20 Marvin Webster 16 D. Johnson, Webster 3 each Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington 14,098 Seattle leads series, 2–1 May 12 Boxscore Denver Nuggets 94 Seattle SuperSonics 100 27–33 31–17 18–23 18–27 Dan Issel 27 Darnell Hillman 11 Bob Wilkerson 8 Dennis Johnson 31 Paul Silas 14 John Johnson 7 Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington 14,098 Seattle leads series, 3–1 #eee May 14 Boxscore Seattle SuperSonics 114 Denver Nuggets 123 24–35 20–26 39–27 31–35 Gus Williams 31 Marvin Webster 12 Williams, J. Johnson 6 each David Thompson 35 Bobby Jones 11 Bob Wilkerson 10 McNichols Sports Arena, Denver, Colorado 17,006 Seattle leads series, 3–2 May 17 Boxscore Denver Nuggets 108 Seattle SuperSonics 123 26–39 28–23 18–31 36–30 David Thompson 21 Anthony Roberts 16 Bob Wilkerson 8 Fred Brown 26 Paul Silas 13 Dennis Johnson 7 Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington 14,098 Seattle wins series, 4–2 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=OKC&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Denver Nuggets versus Oklahoma City Thunder (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021 NBA Finals: (W4) Seattle SuperSonics vs. (E3) Washington Bullets 1978 NBA Finals #eee May 21 Boxscore Washington Bullets 102 Seattle SuperSonics 106 31–25 27–24 26–24 18–33 Kevin Grevey 27 Fred Brown 30 Elvin Hayes 9 Marvin Webster 14 Tom Henderson 7 Dennis Johnson 5 Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington 14,098 Darell Garretson, Ed Rush Seattle leads series, 1–0 "Downtown" Freddie Brown scores 16 of his points in the 4th quarter to lead the Sonics back from a 19-point deficit. May 25 Boxscore Seattle SuperSonics 98 Washington Bullets 106 16–29 36–27 19–24 27–26 Gus Williams 24 Bob Dandridge 34 Marvin Webster 12 Wes Unseld 15 three players 4 each Henderson, Unseld 5 each Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 19,035 Joe Gushue, Jake O'Donnell Series tied, 1–1 #eee May 28 Boxscore Seattle SuperSonics 93 Washington Bullets 92 24–24 25–23 20–20 24–25 Webster, Williams 20 each Elvin Hayes 29 Paul Silas 14 Elvin Hayes 20 five players 2 each Bob Dandridge 6 Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 19,035 Earl Strom, John Vanak Seattle leads series, 2–1 May 30 Boxscore Washington Bullets 120 Seattle SuperSonics 116 OT 23–25 25–31 30–31 28–19 14–10 Bob Dandridge 23 Dennis Johnson 33 Elvin Hayes 13 Marvin Webster 15 Tom Henderson 11 Paul Silas 6 Kingdome, Seattle, Washington 39,457 Jack Madden, Don Murphy Series tied, 2–2 #eee June 2 Boxscore Washington Bullets 94 Seattle SuperSonics 98 24–23 17–29 26–24 27–22 Kevin Grevey 22 Fred Brown 26 Bob Dandridge 10 Marvin Webster 13 Tom Henderson 6 John Johnson 7 Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington 14,098 Joe Gushue, Jake O'Donnell Seattle leads series, 3–2 June 4 Boxscore Seattle SuperSonics 82 Washington Bullets 117 21–19 14–28 26–37 21–33 Fred Brown 17 Elvin Hayes 21 Marvin Webster 12 Elvin Hayes 15 Gus Williams 6 Greg Ballard 6 Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland 19,035 Darell Garretson, Don Murphy Series tied, 3–3 #eee June 7 Boxscore Washington Bullets 105 Seattle SuperSonics 99 31–28 22–17 26–21 26–33 Dandridge, C. Johnson 19 each Marvin Webster 27 Wes Unseld 9 Marvin Webster 19 Wes Unseld 6 Gus Williams 5 Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington 14,098 Jack Madden, Earl Strom Washington wins series, 4–3 This was the last time until 2016 that a road team defeated the home team in Game 7 of the Finals. This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.https://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, 2021 References External links https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/NBA_1978.html Basketball-Reference.com's 1978 NBA Playoffs page Category:NBA playoffs Playoffs fi:NBA-kausi 1977–1978#Pudotuspelit