1977 NBA Finals

1977 NBA World Championship Series
Industry	Professional basketball
Founded	1977
Products	NBA championship series

The 1977 NBA World Championship Series marked the conclusion of the National Basketball Association's 1976–77 campaign and postseason. The Western Conference titleholder, the Portland Trail Blazers, competed against the Eastern Conference champion Philadelphia 76ers, who possessed the home-court advantage. Throughout their four regular-season encounters, each team secured victories exclusively on their own court, splitting the series evenly. The Finals were contested in a best-of-seven format.

This season was notable as the first following the ABA–NBA merger. Portland capitalized on the ABA dispersal draft by acquiring power forward Maurice Lucas, who provided support to their star center Bill Walton. Philadelphia bolstered their roster by signing ABA standout and three-time MVP Julius Erving, fresh off leading the New York Nets to an ABA championship the previous year. Significantly, half of the starting players in the Finals—Julius Erving, Caldwell Jones, George McGinnis, Dave Twardzik, and Maurice Lucas—had ABA backgrounds.

Philadelphia entered the Finals with the best record in the Eastern Conference at 50–32 and were anticipated contenders. In contrast, Portland, which had joined the NBA in 1970 and was now in its seventh season, made its playoff and Finals debut as the Western Conference’s third seed with a 49–33 record. After decisively sweeping the Los Angeles Lakers in four tightly contested games, Portland became part of a sequence of Finals that featured at least one team making its first appearance.

The series began with Philadelphia taking a 2–0 lead; however, Portland rallied to win four consecutive games and secure the championship. This comeback represented only the second instance of a team overcoming a 2–0 deficit to claim the title since the Boston Celtics achieved it in 1969 and remained unmatched until the Miami Heat accomplished a similar feat in 2006.

Background

The Portland Trail Blazers joined the NBA as an expansion franchise in 1970 alongside the Cleveland Cavaliers and Buffalo Braves. After several challenging seasons, their outlook improved dramatically in 1974 when they selected superstar center Bill Walton as the first overall pick; Walton had previously guided UCLA to two national championships. Despite early injury issues for Walton, Portland strengthened its roster by adding key contributors such as Dave Twardzik, Lloyd Neal, Lionel Hollins, and Maurice Lucas. The appointment of coach Jack Ramsay in 1976, combined with Walton’s return to health, propelled the Trail Blazers to their inaugural playoff appearance during the 1976–77 season, finishing with 49 wins. They advanced by defeating the Chicago Bulls and Denver Nuggets, then swept league MVP Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and top-seeded Los Angeles Lakers in the conference finals.

At the same time, the Philadelphia 76ers made their return to postseason play in 1976 after missing out for four years, including a league-worst nine-win campaign during 1972–73. The franchise enhanced its lineup by acquiring ABA All-Star Julius Erving from the New York Nets. The 76ers reached a milestone by winning 50 games for the first time since 1969, overcame defending champions Boston Celtics in a seven-game series, and advanced to their first Finals since by defeating the Houston Rockets.

Path to the Finals

Portland Trail Blazers (Western Conference champions)		Philadelphia 76ers (Eastern Conference champions)
Template:1976–77 NBA West standings3rd seed in Western Conference, 5th best overall record	Regular season	Template:1976–77 NBA East standingsTop seed in Eastern Conference, 2nd best overall record
Overcame (6) Chicago Bulls, 2–1	First round	Received first-round bye
Triumphed over (2) Denver Nuggets, 4–2	Conference semifinals	Defeated (4) Boston Celtics, 4–3
Swept (1) Los Angeles Lakers, 4–0	Conference finals	Beat (2) Houston Rockets, 4–2

Regular season matchups

The two squads split their four encounters evenly, each securing victories on their home court.

Team rosters

Template:Player2

Series overview

Game	Date	Host	Score	Visitor
Game 1	May 22	Philadelphia 76ers	107–101 (1–0)	Portland Trail Blazers
Game 2	May 26	Philadelphia 76ers	107–89 (2–0)	Portland Trail Blazers
Game 3	May 29	Portland Trail Blazers	129–107 (1–2)	Philadelphia 76ers
Game 4	May 31	Portland Trail Blazers	130–98 (2–2)	Philadelphia 76ers
Game 5	June 3	Philadelphia 76ers	104–110 (2–3)	Portland Trail Blazers
Game 6	June 5	Portland Trail Blazers	109–107 (4–2)	Philadelphia 76ers

Trail Blazers claim series victory, 4–2

Game 1

The opening game saw Dr. J ignite the contest with a windmill dunk, but the Blazers were hampered by committing 34 turnovers. Erving led Philadelphia with a team-high of 33 points, supported by Doug Collins’ contribution of 30 points, culminating in a 107–101 win. Walton recorded a double-double, tallying 28 points and grabbing 20 rebounds.

Game 2

In the second matchup, the Sixers secured a commanding 107–89 victory, highlighted by a surge of 14 points scored in less than three minutes. Near the end of the game, tensions flared into a physical confrontation involving Darryl Dawkins and Bob Gross that escalated into a bench-clearing fight. Maurice Lucas came to Gross’s aid by confronting Dawkins; both Dawkins and Lucas were ejected and fined $2,500 each. This altercation served as a catalyst for the Blazers to rally and intensify their challenge against Philadelphia.

Game 3

As the series shifted to Portland, the Trail Blazers dominated with an explosive fourth quarter outscoring Philadelphia by 42 points to take a decisive 129–107 win. A pivotal sequence featured Walton’s alley-oop tip-in followed by a dunk after Twardzik’s steal. Lucas led the team with a performance of 27 points and 12 rebounds; Walton contributed nearly a triple-double with 20 points, 18 rebounds, and nine assists.

Game 4

Philadelphia attempted to capitalize on McGinnis and Jones’ inside presence, but Walton’s shot-blocking prowess combined with a powerful third quarter producing 41 points propelled Portland to an emphatic 130–98 triumph—the largest margin ever recorded in an NBA Game Four at that time.

Game 5

With the series deadlocked, the action returned to Philadelphia where the Blazers exploited the 76ers' aggressive fouling to establish a commanding lead by the third quarter. Although Erving mounted a late rally, scoring 37 points, Portland ultimately triumphed 110–104. The Blazers shattered team rebounding marks by collecting 59 total rebounds—48 on defense—and Walton set an individual benchmark with 24 rebounds, a record that still stands.

Game 6

Holding a 3–2 advantage in the series, Portland welcomed approximately 5,000 enthusiastic fans at their home arena, fueling "Blazermania" as the city anticipated its inaugural championship. Philadelphia matched Portland’s intensity in the opening quarter but fell behind by 15 points at halftime due to Portland’s commanding second-quarter performance. Julius Erving delivered an impressive 40-point effort in an attempt to extend the series, yet Bill Walton’s comprehensive stat line—20 points, 23 rebounds, 7 assists, and 8 blocks—helped maintain Portland’s lead.

In the closing moments, George McGinnis of Philadelphia missed a crucial jump shot that could have tied the game. Walton secured the rebound and advanced the ball upcourt as time expired, clinching a narrow 109–107 victory. The crowd surged onto the court in jubilation.

Walton earned Finals MVP honors and received high praise from Erving, who called him "an inspiration." Maurice Lucas famously commented on Walton’s postgame gesture of tossing his jersey into the crowd: "If I had caught that shirt, I would have eaten it. Bill's my hero."

Portland was awarded two trophies: the Walter A. Brown Trophy, presented annually until this final awarding before its retirement; and the newly introduced Larry O'Brien Trophy, which remains with each championship team permanently while new trophies are produced for subsequent winners.

Notes

Game 6 was originally scheduled for a Sunday morning tip-off at 10:30 a.m. PT (1:30 p.m. ET) to accommodate CBS’s broadcast of the Kemper Open golf tournament. After objections from the NBA, CBS agreed to move the start time to noon.

Despite this being the decisive Finals game, CBS concluded its NBA coverage immediately afterward, foregoing the trophy presentation to resume golf programming. The only extant footage captures Blazers head coach Jack Ramsay commending Walton:

Aftermath

As of , this remains Portland’s sole NBA championship title. The Trail Blazers returned to the Finals in 1990, where they were defeated by the Detroit Pistons in five games, and again in 1992, losing in six games to Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls during their first three-peat run (1991–1993).

The 76ers reached the NBA Finals twice more—in 1980 and 1982—losing both times to Magic Johnson’s Los Angeles Lakers in six games. Their latest championship came in 1983, when they swept the Lakers.

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