1976–77 Philadelphia 76ers season

The 1976–77 NBA season was the 28th season for the franchise in the NBA. Just months earlier, the American Basketball Association had ended its 9th & last campaign and the 2 leagues combined. In a special $6 million deal, the Nets sold Julius Erving, the ABA's leading scorer, to the Philadelphia 76ers for $3 million.[1] The other $3 million went to Erving, by way of a new contract.[1] In Philadelphia, Erving joined another scoring machine, George McGinnis, who had come over earlier from the Indiana Pacers. This accumulation of talent brought talk of an immediate championship to Philadelphia.

1976–77 Philadelphia 76ers season
Conference champions
Division champions
Head coachGene Shue
General managerPat Williams
ArenaThe Spectrum
Results
Record50–32 (.610)
PlaceDivision: 1st (Atlantic)
Conference: 1st (Eastern)
Playoff finishNBA Finals
(Lost to Trail Blazers 2–4)
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
TelevisionWKBS-TV
PRISM
RadioWCAU

The talented 76ers had posted the best record in the Eastern Conference with a record of 50–32.[1] Gene Shue was the coach & his key players were Erving (the esteemed Dr. J), McGinnis & 6-foot-6 shooting guard Doug Collins. Other key contributors included point guard Henry Bibby and World B. Free. Caldwell Jones started at center with 20-year-old Darryl Dawkins, also known as "Chocolate Thunder," in a backup role. The reserve forwards were Steve Mix, Harvey Catchings and Joe Bryant. The Sixers beat the Boston Celtics & the Houston Rockets in the Eastern Conference Playoffs, but lost to the Portland Trail Blazers 4–2, after winning the first 2 games.[1]

Offseason

NBA Draft
Main article: 1976 NBA draft
Round Pick Player Position Nationality College
112Terry FurlowSG/SF United StatesMichigan State
347Ron NorwoodG United StatesDePaul
464Freeman BladeG United StatesMSU Billings
581Jeff Browne United StatesMissouri Western
699Mike DunleavyG United StatesSouth Carolina
7117Phil WalkerSG United StatesMillersville
8135Lee Dixon United StatesHardin-Simmons
9152Fly WilliamsSG United StatesAustin Peay
10168Ed Stefanski United StatesPennsylvania

Roster
Roster listing
Philadelphia 76ers roster
Players Coaches
Pos.No.NameHeightWeightDOB (YYYY-MM-DD)From
G 10 Bibby, Henry 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) UCLA
G/F 23 Bryant, Joe 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 185 lb (84 kg) La Salle
F/C 42 Catchings, Harvey 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 218 lb (99 kg) Hardin–Simmons
G 20 Collins, Doug 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Illinois State
C 53 Dawkins, Darryl 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 251 lb (114 kg) Evans High School
G 10 Dunleavy, Mike 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) South Carolina
F 6 Erving, Julius 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) UMass
G 21 Free, Lloyd 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Guilford
G 25 Furlow, Terry 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Michigan State
C 11 Jones, Caldwell 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 217 lb (98 kg) Albany State
F 30 McGinnis, George 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Indiana
F 50 Mix, Steve 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Toledo
Head coach
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured

Regular season

Season standings
Atlantic Division W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-Philadelphia 76ers 5032.610–32–918–2311–5
x-Boston Celtics 4438.537628–1316–259–7
New York Knicks 4042.4881026–1514–278–8
Buffalo Braves 3052.3662023–187–346–10
New York Nets 2260.2682810–3112–296–10
# Eastern Conference
Team W L PCT GB
1 z-Philadelphia 76ers5032.610–
2 y-Houston Rockets4933.5981
3 x-Washington Bullets4834.5852
4 x-Boston Celtics4438.5376
5 x-San Antonio Spurs4438.5376
6 x-Cleveland Cavaliers4339.5247
7 New York Knicks4042.48810
8 New Orleans Jazz3547.42715
9 Atlanta Hawks3151.37819
10 Buffalo Braves3052.36620
11 New York Nets2260.26828


Record vs. opponents
1976–77 NBA Records
Team ATL BOS BUF CHI CLE DEN DET GSW HOU IND KCK LAL MIL NOJ NYK NYN PHI PHO POR SAS SEA WAS
Atlanta —0–44–02–22–22–20–40–41–30–41–22–22–21–31–33–11–30–43–14–01–21–3
Boston 4–0—3–12–21–33–12–21–32–21–23–12–13–12–22–23–11–32–21–34–02–20–4
Buffalo 0–41–3—1–32–22–23–10–31–31–30–31–33–13–11–32–22–23–11–30–43–10–4
Chicago 2–22–23–1—3–11–32–22–21–32–22–23–13–14–02–22–12–22–20–43–12–21–2
Cleveland 2–23–12–21–3—2–21–32–21–32–13–12–24–02–22–23–11–32–12–22–23–11–3
Denver 2–21–32–23–12–2—3–12–23–03–13–12–23–13–12–23–11–33–12–21–24–02–2
Detroit 4–02–21–32–23–11–3—3–12–22–24–01–33–13–11–23–12–22–22–21–21–31–3
Golden State 4–03–13–02–22–22–21–3—2–14–01–32–21–31–31–33–13–14–01–32–21–33–1
Houston 3–12–23–13–13–10–32–21–2—4–02–22–23–12–22–22–21–33–13–12–23–13–1
Indiana 4–02–13–12–21–21–32–20–40–4—2–21–32–22–22–24–02–22–20–42–22–20–4
Kansas City 2–11–33–02–21–31–30–43–12–22–2—1–32–22–24–04–01–33–12–21–31–32–2
Los Angeles 2–21–23–11–32–22–23–12–22–23–13–1—3–13–01–34–02–23–13–13–13–14–0
Milwaukee 2–21–31–31–30–41–31–33–11–32–22–21–3—1–21–33–11–21–32–23–11–31–3
New Orleans 3–12–21–30–42–21–31–33–12–22–22–20–32–1—3–12–20–43–12–21–31–32–2
N.Y. Knicks 3–12–23–12–22–22–22–13–12–22–20–43–13–11–3—2–21–32–21–31–31–22–2
N.Y. Nets 1–31–32–21–21–31–31–31–32–20–40–40–41–32–22–2—1–32–20–31–31–31–3
Philadelphia 3–13–12–22–23–13–12–21–33–12–23–12–22–14–03–13–1—1–22–21–32–23–1
Phoenix 4–02–21–32–21–21–32–20–41–32–21–31–33–11–32–22–22–1—1–31–33–11–3
Portland 1–33–13–14–02–22–22–23–11–34–02–21–32–22–23–13–02–23–1—2–23–11–2
San Antonio 0–40–44–01–32–22–12–12–22–22–23–11–31–33–13–13–13–13–12–2—3–12–2
Seattle 2–12–21–32–21–30–43–13–11–32–23–11–33–13–12–13–12–21–31–31–3—3–1
Washington 3–14–04–02–13–12–23–11–31–34–02–20–43–12–22–23–11–33–12–12–21–3—

October
Date Opponent Score Result Record Streak
Fri, Oct 22, 1976 San Antonio Spurs 118–121 Loss 0–1 Lost 1
Sat, Oct 23, 1976 @ Buffalo Braves 105–108 Loss 0–2 Lost 2
Tue, Oct 26, 1976 @ New Orleans Jazz 111–101 Win 1–2 Lost 1

[2]

Postseason

Philly started the postseason on a strong note. The 76ers defeated the defending world champion Boston Celtics in an exciting 7 game series. In the Eastern Conference Finals, the 76ers defeated the Houston Rockets in 6 tough games.

NBA finals

The Finals opened in the Spectrum on Sunday, May 22. The 76ers seemed unbeatable after the first 2 games. Erving opened Game 1 with a stupendous dunk off the opening tip. He finished with 33 points and Collins had 30 as Philadelphia won 107–101. The Blazers were rattled enough to commit 34 turnovers. Walton finished with 28 points and 20 rebounds.[1] In Game 2 four nights later, the Sixers won handily, 107–89. Jones and Dawkins handled Walton easily, while the Sixers dominated in the second quarter, scoring 14 points in one three-minute stretch on their way to a 61–43 halftime lead. The game became very physical with about five minutes left. First, Portland's Lloyd Neal and McGinnis squared off, followed by Lucas and Dawkins trading elbows.[1] In Game 3, played on Sunday, May 29, Lucas strode directly to the Philadelphia bench, then startled everybody, including Dawkins, by sticking out his hand for a shake. The Blazers had a high scoring attack to win the game. Lucas himself contributed 27 points and 12 rebounds. Walton had a mere nine assists, 20 points, and 18 rebounds. Twardzik, too, had returned to speed, driving the Portland offense along to a 42-point fourth quarter. They won in a blaze, 129–107, closing the series gap to 2–1.[1] In Game 4, Portland opened up a quick 17-point lead, then cruised to a 130–98 win. Walton was sent to the bench with five fouls in the third. With a little more than eight minutes left in Game 5, Portland led 91–69 and the crowd was headed home. Erving rallied the Sixers to make it respectable at the end, 110–104. He had managed 37 points in the game, but the Blazers were one game away from their first title. Gross scored 25 points to lead the Blazers, while Lucas had 20 with 13 rebounds. Walton finished with 24 rebounds and 14 points.[1] In the sixth and deciding game, Walton had 20 points, 23 rebounds, eight blocks and seven assists. The Portland lead was still 12 with just half of the fourth quarter left when Erving led his teammates on one final run. At the four-minute mark, the lead was cut to four, 102–98. McGinnis came through with a jumper, and the lead was only two points with 18 seconds left. The Sixers needed a turnover, and they finally got it from McGinnis, who was able to force a jump ball with Gross. With eight seconds remaining, Erving put up a jumper in the lane but missed. Free got the ball and lofted a baseline shot and missed too. With a second left, McGinnis tried to force a seventh and deciding game but he missed. Walton knocked the loose ball away and ripped off his drenched jersey, and hurled it into the delirious crowd.[1]

This loss began a losing streak of championships by the city's teams during presidential inauguration years. 1989 was the only inauguration year in which no Philadelphia sports team made or lost a championship until 2013, when all four teams failed to make it to the championship round. In 2017, no Philly team made it to the finals, although the 2017 Philadelphia Eagles did win the Super Bowl, albeit in February 2018.

Awards and honors

References
  1. "NBA.com: Walton, Lucas Ignite 'Blazermania'". Archived from the original on 2012-02-21. Retrieved 2008-04-22.
  2. 1976–77 Philadelphia 76ers Games – Basketball-Reference.com
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