1978 Seattle SuperSonics: The Improbable Finals Run

The Seattle SuperSonics (today’s Oklahoma City Thunder) didn’t have much of a history coming into 1978. Since their founding a decade earlier, the  Sonics had made the playoffs just twice. They were known more for the fame of their coach—Celtic legend Bill Russell was on the sidelines for those postseason trips of 1975-76 but was out after a 40-42 season in 1977. That set the stage for 1978’s wild ride—a disastrous start, another coaching change very early, and a year that improbably ended in the NBA Finals.

THE PIECES WERE IN PLACE

Gus Williams led a talented backcourt with 18 points per game. Fred Brown often came off the bench, but he got his minutes and hit 17ppg. A young Dennis Johnson, just getting started on his Hall of Fame career, averaged 13ppg and played terrific defense. All three guards could pass, and the offense flowed smoothly.

Marvin Webster was the man in the middle, a 7’1” center who averaged 14 points/13 rebounds per game. He was augmented by good forwards, both young and old. Paul Silas was now 34-years-old, but the veteran could still hit the boards, averaging eight rebounds a night. Jack Sikma was a rookie, averaging an 11/8 line.

Seattle was a young team, and they had all the pieces for success. But they certainly did not play like it in the early going.

A SEASON GOING NOWHERE

The Sonics lost seven of their first eight games, the only win coming over the hapless Buffalo Braves (today’s Los Angeles Clippers). By November 29, they were 5-17. Bob Hopkins, Russell’s cousin who was the new head coach, was shown the door almost as quickly as he had come in. Lenny Wilkens was hired. And a new era of Seattle SuperSonics basketball effectively began.

THE TURNAROUND

Wilken’s impact was immediate. Seattle won eleven of their next twelve games. That included a December 16 visit to play Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s Los Angeles Lakers. With Brown going for 24 points off the bench on 11-for-15 shooting, the Sonics left L.A. with a 98-90 win.

Two days later they were home against the Washington Bullets, a team they would see much more of. Seattle was outshot from the floor 51 percent 37 percent but made up for it by attacking the glass. Webster’s 21 points/23 rebounds keyed a 63-42 rebounding edge. As a team, the Sonics collected 33 offensive rebounds and they nipped the Bullets in overtime, 111-109.

Two days after that, Seattle hosted the Denver Nuggets, a key contender in the Western Conference. Again, the Sonics assaulted the boards. This time the rebounding margin was 69-41, with Webster and Silas combining for almost half. The Sonics won 93-88.

By the end of the calendar year, Seattle had lifted their record to 17-20 and were only 1 ½ games off the pace to make the playoffs.

BECOMING A CONTENDER

The Sonics didn’t stop surging in January. They only lost two games all month, and those were both to contenders, the San Antonio Spurs and Philadelphia 76ers. On February 19, Seattle hosted Denver again. The Nuggets brilliant scorer, David Thompson, got loose for 43 points. The Sonics countered with depth, winning bench scoring 57-23 and winning the basketball game in overtime, 126-123.

At the end of February, Seattle’s record was 34-27. From the dregs of their woeful start, the Sonics were in command for the postseason, with a five-game cushion. They were also in position for the 4-seed, meaning homecourt advantage in the first round.

Seattle would not catch the Portland Trail Blazers in the Pacific Division. The Blazers, the defending champs, had run away from the rest of the league. In an era when just six teams per conference qualified for the playoffs, the division winner got a bye into the conference semifinals. That possibility was not realistically available to the Sonics.

But on the final day of February, Portland’s star center, Bill Walton, suffered a foot injury that knocked him out for the rest of the regular season. While he was expected back for the playoffs, a Western Conference outcome that seemed certain was now up in the air. And Seattle was the hottest team going.

STEADY DOWN THE STRETCH

After a brief stumble at the beginning of March, when the Sonics lost three straight games, they quickly found their mojo again. The stretch drive was marked by wins over the key teams in the Western Conference landscape, the Lakers, Nuggets and Blazers.

Seattle finished 47-35. It was enough to beat Los Angeles for the 4-seed. The Sonics had homecourt edge on the Lakers as they prepared for a first round that was then called a “mini-series” and was just best two-of-three.

TAKING OUT KAREEM

Los Angeles was built around Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who averaged 26 points/13 rebounds per game in 1978. They had great scoring at the forward position, with Adrian Dantley and Jamaal Wilkes. They had a good rookie guard in Norm Nixon.

But they weren’t clicking the way the way Seattle was down the stretch. In Game 1 of this mini-series, the Sonics held the Lakers to 42 percent shooting from the floor, got 23 points from Williams and a 19/14 line from Webster in a 102-90 win.

Seattle went on the road for Game 2 and hung in for three quarters, but they didn’t rebound with desperation the way L.A. was, losing the board battle 64-38. It resulted in a 105-99 loss and a winner-take-all game back up in the Pacific Northwest.

The Sonics turned the tables on the glass in the decisive game. They enjoyed a decisive 49-31 advantage in rebounding. Webster delivered a 20/18 line, and Sikma posted 24 points/9 rebounds. With the money on the table, they had outplayed the great Laker frontcourt and delivered Seattle a 111-102 win.

They were going to the conference semifinals to take their shot at Portland.

DETHRONING PORTLAND

The Blazers had struggled badly since Walton’s injury on the final day of February. But their dominance was such that they still won 58 games and Walton was still the MVP. Furthermore, he was coming back for the playoffs. The defending champs had a terrific power forward in Maurice Lucas, a solid point guard with Lionel Hollins and played excellent all-around defense.

But it was Seattle’s defense that defined Game 1. The held Portland to 40 percent from the floor. With Walton, they simply kept the great center off the ball, holding him to nine shots. In the meantime, Webster scored 24, and Sikma delivered an 18/11 line. The Sonics stole the road opener, 104-95.

They lost a tough 96-93 decision in Game 2, but Portland lost something worse—Walton walked off the floor again, having reinjured his foot. This time he was done for the year. Seattle had already earned a road split and now the door was wide open.

And the Sonics went home and took full advantage of the opportunity. A proud Blazer team still played vigorous defense, but without Walton, Seattle was the team cleaning up the misses, to the tune of a 71-40 rebounding advantage in Game 3. Webster alone had 23 boards and Silas added 13. The Sonics pulled away in the second half to win 99-84.

Game 4 was a battle and went down to the wire. Seattle trailed by eight after three quarters. They got a big game from Sikma, who went for 28/10. Brown came off the bench and knocked down 17 points. The Sonics surged in the fourth quarter to nip the Blazers 100-98.

Seattle effectively mailed in Game 5 on the road, trailing by 18 at the half and losing 113-89. They came back home to try and close this out. In Game 6, it was the guards who delivered. Dennis Johnson popped in 20 points, while Brown again ignited the offense off the bench, this time with 19. And Webster kept working down low, with a 19/11 line.

The Sonics won 105-94. The next step on this magical turnaround ride was the Western Conference Finals.

WINNING THE WEST

Denver, with a record of 48-34, was the opponent. The Nuggets were a well-balanced team. David Thompson, one of the league’s dynamic scorers, was on the wings. Dan Issell could score and rebound in the low post. Bobby Jones was at forward. He was a dependable scorer and rebounder. But more importantly, he was one of the great defensive forwards of all-time and keyed a lineup that knew how to defend.

Seattle struggled in the series opener, shooting poorly, with Williams going 5-for-17. They lost 116-107. Then they fell behind by eight points after the first quarter of Game 2. Then their depth started to kick in. Six players scored at least 13 points, led by 26 from Brown. The Sonics got a 121-111 win and were able to again secure a road split to open a playoff series.

The lineup balance continued in Game 3, with six players between 10-20 points. And they defense locked in, forcing Thompson into a 6-for-19 night and winning turnovers 19-9. Seattle won 105-91.

Sonic defense continued to harass Thompson in Game 4, as the Nugget star went 10-for-27 from the floor. That was the key to turning around an eight-point halftime deficit. Johnson poured in 31 points and Seattle again held serve on their home floor, 100-94.

For the second straight series, the Sonics effectively took off a road Game 5 when they had a commanding 3-1 series lead, being decisively outrebounded and losing 123-114. They came back home to try and clinch.

In front of their home fans for Game 6, Seattle was in high gear. Williams scored 24 points, dished out six assists, and grabbed six rebounds. Webster produced 18 points/13 rebounds. And Brown’s scoring off the bench continued, with 26. The Sonics were in complete command and led by 21 points after three quarters. The 123-108 win closed out the series.

This ride could not be more improbable. When Wilkens came on board at the end of November, just making the playoffs would have been a wildly optimistic prediction. Now, Seattle was not only going to the NBA Finals, they were going in as the betting favorite.

ONE WIN FROM A CHAMPIONSHIP

The Washington Bullets came out of the Eastern Conference. The Bullets’ record was just 44-38 and like the Sonics, they had taken the long way home, starting in the mini-series. Washington was built around center Elvin Hayes and their own balanced lineup that was coming together at the right time.

Seattle’s homecourt advantage would have a unique twist. The NBA’s lack of popularity in this era is vividly demonstrated that an NBA Finals home game got less priority from the old Seattle Kingdome than a regular season baseball game from the Mariners and a trade show.

There were scheduling conflicts. The league resolved them with a 1-2-2-1-1 format. Seattle would play Game 1 at home as usual, then play two on the road and two at home, before alternating sites for Game 6 and 7 under the customary system.

The Sonics got 30 points from Brown and rallied from an eleven-point deficit after three quarters to win the opener, 106-102. They got a split of the two games in D.C., using airtight defense to hold the Bullets to 34 percent shooting and steal a 93-92 win in Game 3.

Seattle had not lost at home in these playoffs. Keep that up, and they could close it out over the next two games. But in Game 4, they coughed up a nine-point lead after three quarters and lost in overtime.

Even so, they bounced back in Game 5, getting a 24/7 line from Johnson and 26 from Brown to win 98-94. They were one win from a title and still had a home Game 7 in their back pocket.

As they had all postseason, Seattle played with fire in a road game where they had cushion, giving up a non-competitive 117-82 loss. They came back home for the winner-take-all finale.

But this time, there was no bounce back in front of the home fans. The Sonics struggled offensively, notably Johnson, who went 0-for-14 from the floor. They trailed by 13 after three quarters and while they tried to rally it was too late. A 105-99 loss ended the championship dream.

EVEN BETTER DAYS AHEAD

It was a bitter ending, but it had been an incredible ride, as improbable an NBA Finals journey as the league has ever seen. And there was redemption coming. One year later, in 1979, Seattle and Washington rematched in the NBA Finals. This time, the Sonics won the championship—with Johnson as Finals MVP.