1978–79 Washington Bullets season

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1978–79 Washington Bullets season
Eastern Conference Champions
Head coach Dick Motta
Arena Capital Centre
Results
Record 54–28 (.659)
Place Division: 1st (Atlantic)
Conference: 1st (Eastern)
Playoff finish NBA Finals
(Eliminated 1-4)
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
Television WDCA
Radio WJMD
< 1977–78 1979–80 >

Coming off their NBA Championship, the Bullets were transferred to the Atlantic Division.[1] The Bullets would continue to remain one of the top teams in the league as they captured the Atlantic Division championship with a league best record of 54-28. Despite their league best record, the Bullets would end the season on a sour note losing 8 of their last 11.

Offseason

NBA Draft

Roster

Depth chart

Pos. Starter Bench Reserve Inactive
C Wes Unseld Dave Corzine
PF Elvin Hayes Mitch Kupchak
SF Bob Dandridge Greg Ballard
SG Kevin Grevey Charles Johnson Roger Phegley
PG Tom Henderson Larry Wright Phil Chenier

Regular season

Season standings

Atlantic Division
Team W L PCT. GB
Washington Bullets 54 28 .659 -
Philadelphia 76ers 47 35 .573 7
New Jersey Nets 37 45 .451 17
New York Knicks 31 51 .378 23
Boston Celtics 29 53 .354 25

[2]

Season Schedule

Player stats

Note: GP= Games played; REB= Rebounds; AST= Assists; STL = Steals; BLK = Blocks; PTS = Points; AVG = Average

Player GP REB AST STL BLK PTS AVG

Playoffs

East First Round

The Bullets had a first round bye.

East Conference Semifinals

In the conference semifinal round of the playoffs, the Bullets needed 7 games to beat the Atlanta Hawks. The Bullets nearly lost the series as they had a 3-1 series lead.[1]

(1) Washington Bullets vs. (5) Atlanta Hawks: Bullets win series 4-3

  • Game 1 @ Washington: Washington 103, Atlanta 89
  • Game 2 @ Washington: Atlanta 107, Washington 99
  • Game 3 @ Atlanta: Washington 89, Atlanta 77
  • Game 4 @ Atlanta: Washington 120, Atlanta 118 (OT)
  • Game 5 @ Washington: Atlanta 107, Washington 103
  • Game 6 @ Atlanta: Atlanta 104, Washington 86
  • Game 7 @ Washington: Washington 100, Atlanta 94

East Conference Finals

In the Eastern Finals, the Bullets would find themselves down 3 games to 1 facing the San Antonio Spurs. The Bullets would rally to win the next 2 games and force a 7th game at home. In Game 7 the Bullets would rally again. They overcame a 4th Quarter deficit to beat the Spurs 107-105.[1]

(1) Washington Bullets vs. (2) San Antonio Spurs: Bullets win series 4-3

  • Game 1 @ Washington: San Antonio 118, Washington 97
  • Game 2 @ Washington: Washington 115, San Antonio 95
  • Game 3 @ San Antonio: San Antonio 116, Washington 114
  • Game 4 @ San Antonio: San Antonio 118, Washington 102
  • Game 5 @ Washington: Washington 107, San Antonio 103
  • Game 6 @ San Antonio: Washington 108, San Antonio 100
  • Game 7 @ Washington: Washington 107, San Antonio 105

NBA Finals

The triumph would set up a rematch with the Seattle SuperSonics in the NBA Finals. In the Finals, the Bullets would squeak out a close victory in Game 1 by a score of 99-97. However, the Sonics would rally to win the next 4 and take the series in 5 games.[1]

Game Date Home Team Result Road Team
Game 1 May 20 Washington 99-97 Seattle
Game 2 May 24 Washington 82-92 Seattle
Game 3 May 27 Seattle 105-95 Washington
Game 4 May 29 Seattle 114-112 Washington
Game 5 June 1 Washington 93-97 Seattle

SuperSonics win series 4-1

Awards and honors

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Washington Wizards (1963-Present)
  2. ↑ 1991-92 NBA Season Summary - Basketball-Reference.com
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