# 1978 NBA playoffs

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 | First Round | First Round | Conference Semifinals | Conference Semifinals | Conference Semifinals | Conference Finals | Conference Finals | Conference Finals | NBA Finals | NBA Finals | NBA Finals |
| | | | E1 | Philadelphia* | 4 | | | | | | |
| E4 | Cleveland | 0 | E5 | New York | 0 | | | | | | |
| E5 | New York | 2 | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | E1 | Philadelphia* | 2 | | | |
| | | | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | E3 | Washington | 4 | | | |
| | | | E3 | Washington | 4 | | | | | | |
| E3 | Washington | 2 | E2 | San Antonio* | 2 | | | | | | |
| E6 | Atlanta | 0 | | | | | | | E3 | Washington | 4 |
| | | | | | | | | | W4 | Seattle | 3 |
| | | | W1 | Portland* | 2 | | | | | | |
| W4 | Seattle | 2 | W4 | Seattle | 4 | | | | | | |
| W5 | Los Angeles | 1 | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | W4 | Seattle | 4 | | | |
| | | | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | W2 | Denver* | 2 | | | |
| | | | W6 | Milwaukee | 3 | | | | | | |
| W3 | Phoenix | 0 | W2 | Denver* | 4 | | | | | | |
| W6 | Milwaukee | 2 | | | | | | | | | |
* * Division winner
* Bold Series winner
* Italic Team with home-court advantage

## First round
### Eastern Conference first round
#### (3) Washington Bullets vs. (6) Atlanta Hawks

* April 12
* Boxscore
Atlanta Hawks 94, Washington Bullets 103 :
| Scoring by quarter: 25–25, 23–31, 23–25, 23–22 |||
| Pts: John Drew 25 Rebs: Tom McMillen 14 Asts: Eddie Johnson 4 | Pts: Bob Dandridge 20 Rebs: Wes Unseld 15 Asts: Wes Unseld 7 |
| Washington leads series, 1–0 |||
* Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland Attendance: 9,326
* April 14
* Boxscore
Washington Bullets 107, Atlanta Hawks 103 (OT) :
| Scoring by quarter: 25–26, 23–20, 30–24, 17–25, Overtime: 12–8 |||
| Pts: Kevin Grevey 41 Rebs: Wes Unseld 15 Asts: Tom Henderson 5 | Pts: John Drew 27 Rebs: Drew, McMillen 8 each Asts: Hill, Hawes 5 each |
| Washington wins series, 2–0 |||
* Omni Coliseum, Atlanta, Georgia Attendance: 15,601
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.
Tied 1–1 in all-time playoff series :
1965
St. Louis Hawks 1, Baltimore Bullets 3
1965 Western Division Semifinals
1966
Baltimore Bullets 0, St. Louis Hawks 3
1966 Western Division Semifinals :

#### (4) Cleveland Cavaliers vs. (5) New York Knicks

* April 12
* Boxscore
New York Knicks 132, Cleveland Cavaliers 114 :
| Scoring by quarter: 32–31, 31–28, 36–31, 33–24 |||
| Pts: Bob McAdoo 41 Rebs: Spencer Haywood 8 Asts: Ray Williams 6 | Pts: Campy Russell 23 Rebs: Elmore Smith 12 Asts: Foots Walker 6 |
| New York leads series, 1–0 |||
* Richfield Coliseum, Richfield, Ohio Attendance: 19,739
* April 14
* Boxscore
Cleveland Cavaliers 107, New York Knicks 109 :
| Scoring by quarter: 29–26, 27–20, 25–31, 26–32 |||
| Pts: Campy Russell 32 Rebs: Campy Russell 8 Asts: Campy Russell 6 | Pts: McAdoo, Haywood 27 each Rebs: Bob McAdoo 12 Asts: Ray Williams 10 |
| New York wins series, 2–0 |||
* Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York Attendance: 18,965
This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.

### Western Conference first round
#### (3) Phoenix Suns vs. (6) Milwaukee Bucks

* April 11
* Boxscore
Milwaukee Bucks 111, Phoenix Suns 103 :
| Scoring by quarter: 24–31, 26–24, 29–28, 32–20 |||
| Pts: Brian Winters 31 Rebs: Marques Johnson 16 Asts: Quinn Buckner 8 | Pts: Walter Davis 31 Rebs: Alvan Adams 9 Asts: Paul Westphal 9 |
| Milwaukee leads series, 1–0 |||
* Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Phoenix, Arizona Attendance: 12,161
* April 14
* Boxscore
Phoenix Suns 90, Milwaukee Bucks 94 :
| Scoring by quarter: 36–25, 16–24, 17–22, 21–23 |||
| Pts: Paul Westphal 32 Rebs: Walter Davis 9 Asts: Paul Westphal 10 | Pts: Marques Johnson 33 Rebs: Dave Meyers 14 Asts: Quinn Buckner 10 |
| Milwaukee wins series, 2–0 |||
* MECCA Arena, Milwaukee, Wisconsin Attendance: 10,938
This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.

#### (4) Seattle SuperSonics vs. (5) Los Angeles Lakers

* April 12
* Boxscore
Los Angeles Lakers 90, Seattle SuperSonics 102 :
| Scoring by quarter: 23–22, 24–25, 21–24, 22–31 |||
| Pts: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 26 Rebs: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 12 Asts: Nixon, Scott 6 each | Pts: Gus Williams 23 Rebs: Marvin Webster 14 Asts: Fred Brown 5 |
| Seattle leads series, 1–0 |||
* Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington Attendance: 14,098
* April 14
* Boxscore
Seattle SuperSonics 99, Los Angeles Lakers 105 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–23, 27–26, 21–26, 25–30 |||
| Pts: Dennis Johnson 21 Rebs: Marvin Webster 10 Asts: Sikma, Williams 4 each | Pts: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 24 Rebs: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 18 Asts: Adrian Dantley 6 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* The Forum, Inglewood, California Attendance: 15,051
* April 16
* Boxscore
Los Angeles Lakers 102, Seattle SuperSonics 111 :
| Scoring by quarter: 24–26, 26–33, 28–32, 24–20 |||
| Pts: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 31 Rebs: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 11 Asts: Norm Nixon 5 | Pts: Jack Sikma 24 Rebs: Marvin Webster 18 Asts: Gus Williams 8 |
| Seattle wins series, 2–1 |||
* Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington Attendance: 14,098
This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.

## Conference semifinals
### Eastern Conference semifinals
#### (1) Philadelphia 76ers vs. (5) New York Knicks

* April 16
* Boxscore
New York Knicks 90, Philadelphia 76ers 130 :
| Scoring by quarter: 20–28, 26–33, 22–28, 22–41 |||
| Pts: Ray Williams 24 Rebs: Bob McAdoo 13 Asts: Bob McAdoo 6 | Pts: Steve Mix 19 Rebs: Caldwell Jones 16 Asts: Steve Mix 7 |
| Philadelphia leads series, 1–0 |||
* Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Attendance: 13,011
* April 18
* Boxscore
New York Knicks 100, Philadelphia 76ers 119 :
| Scoring by quarter: 28–26, 24–36, 18–26, 30–31 |||
| Pts: Ray Williams 24 Rebs: three players 6 each Asts: Bob McAdoo 6 | Pts: Julius Erving 22 Rebs: Caldwell Jones 11 Asts: Darryl Dawkins 6 |
| Philadelphia leads series, 2–0 |||
* Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Attendance: 15,853
* April 20
* Boxscore
Philadelphia 76ers 137, New York Knicks 126 :
| Scoring by quarter: 37–30, 35–35, 31–28, 34–33 |||
| Pts: McGinnis, Free 29 each Rebs: Julius Erving 10 Asts: Collins, Erving 7 each | Pts: Bob McAdoo 29 Rebs: Lonnie Shelton 14 Asts: Butch Beard 8 |
| Philadelphia leads series, 3–0 |||
* Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York Attendance: 18,697
* April 23
* Boxscore
Philadelphia 76ers 112, New York Knicks 107 :
| Scoring by quarter: 25–30, 32–29, 26–24, 29–24 |||
| Pts: Doug Collins 24 Rebs: Caldwell Jones 14 Asts: Collins, Erving 4 each | Pts: Bob McAdoo 24 Rebs: Bob McAdoo 14 Asts: McAdoo, Williams 4 each |
| Philadelphia wins series, 4–0 |||
* Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York Attendance: 16,307
This was the seventh playoff meeting between these two teams, with the 76ers winning four of the first six meetings.
Philadelphia leads 4–2 in all-time playoff series :
1950
New York Knicks 1, Syracuse Nationals 2
1950 Eastern Division Finals
1951
New York Knicks 3, Syracuse Nationals 2
1951 Eastern Division Finals
1952
New York Knicks 3, Syracuse Nationals 1
1952 Eastern Division Finals
1954
New York Knicks 0, Syracuse Nationals 2
1954 Eastern Division Round Robin semifinals
1959
New York Knicks 0, Syracuse Nationals 2
1959 Eastern Division Semifinals
1968
New York Knicks 2, Philadelphia 76ers 4
1968 Eastern Division Semifinals :

#### (2) San Antonio Spurs vs. (3) Washington Bullets

* April 16
* Boxscore
Washington Bullets 103, San Antonio Spurs 114 :
| Scoring by quarter: 29–25, 20–23, 27–34, 27–32 |||
| Pts: Elvin Hayes 26 Rebs: Elvin Hayes 15 Asts: Elvin Hayes 6 | Pts: George Gervin 35 Rebs: Larry Kenon 9 Asts: Gervin, Kenon 5 each |
| San Antonio leads series, 1–0 |||
* HemisFair Arena, San Antonio, Texas Attendance: 9,669
* April 18
* Boxscore
Washington Bullets 121, San Antonio Spurs 117 :
| Scoring by quarter: 33–27, 32–28, 35–28, 21–34 |||
| Pts: Kevin Grevey 31 Rebs: Wes Unseld 13 Asts: Larry Wright 8 | Pts: George Gervin 46 Rebs: Larry Kenon 8 Asts: Larry Kenon 6 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* HemisFair Arena, San Antonio, Texas Attendance: 9,871
* April 21
* Boxscore
San Antonio Spurs 105, Washington Bullets 118 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–38, 24–25, 24–30, 31–25 |||
| Pts: George Gervin 33 Rebs: Larry Kenon 9 Asts: Larry Kenon 4 | Pts: Bob Dandridge 28 Rebs: Elvin Hayes 12 Asts: Wes Unseld 8 |
| Washington leads series, 2–1 |||
* Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland Attendance: 17,417
* April 23
* Boxscore
San Antonio Spurs 95, Washington Bullets 98 :
| Scoring by quarter: 24–18, 23–25, 24–27, 24–28 |||
| Pts: George Gervin 35 Rebs: Billy Paultz 8 Asts: Mike Gale 7 | Pts: Bob Dandridge 24 Rebs: Elvin Hayes 13 Asts: Bob Dandridge 8 |
| Washington leads series, 3–1 |||
* Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland Attendance: 13,459
* April 25
* Boxscore
Washington Bullets 105, San Antonio Spurs 116 :
| Scoring by quarter: 27–33, 28–24, 19–26, 31–33 |||
| Pts: Charles Johnson 21 Rebs: Elvin Hayes 13 Asts: Wes Unseld 6 | Pts: George Gervin 27 Rebs: Larry Kenon 14 Asts: Louie Dampier 6 |
| Washington leads series, 3–2 |||
* HemisFair Arena, San Antonio, Texas Attendance: 9,709
* April 28
* Boxscore
San Antonio Spurs 100, Washington Bullets 103 :
| Scoring by quarter: 29–25, 23–33, 22–19, 26–26 |||
| Pts: Mark Olberding 24 Rebs: Green, Paultz 9 each Asts: Mike Gale 9 | Pts: Elvin Hayes 25 Rebs: Wes Unseld 16 Asts: Wes Unseld 5 |
| Washington wins series, 4–2 |||
* Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland Attendance: 19,035
This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.

### Western Conference semifinals
#### (1) Portland Trail Blazers vs. (4) Seattle SuperSonics

* April 18
* Boxscore
Seattle SuperSonics 104, Portland Trail Blazers 95 :
| Scoring by quarter: 23–34, 23–19, 33–22, 25–20 |||
| Pts: Marvin Webster 24 Rebs: Jack Sikma 11 Asts: Dennis Johnson 4 | Pts: Johnny Davis 20 Rebs: Bill Walton 16 Asts: Lionel Hollins 9 |
| Seattle leads series, 1–0 |||
* Memorial Coliseum, Portland, Oregon Attendance: 12,666
* April 21
* Boxscore
Seattle SuperSonics 93, Portland Trail Blazers 96 :
| Scoring by quarter: 30–20, 19–20, 22–30, 22–26 |||
| Pts: Gus Williams 31 Rebs: Marvin Webster 15 Asts: Marvin Webster 7 | Pts: Maurice Lucas 19 Rebs: Maurice Lucas 14 Asts: Lionel Hollins 5 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* Memorial Coliseum, Portland, Oregon Attendance: 12,666
* Bill Walton's final game in a Portland Trail Blazer uniform.
* April 23
* Boxscore
Portland Trail Blazers 84, Seattle SuperSonics 99 :
| Scoring by quarter: 25–20, 18–24, 19–27, 22–28 |||
| Pts: Tom Owens 24 Rebs: Owens, Lucas 9 each Asts: Dave Twardzik 5 | Pts: J. Johnson, Brown 18 each Rebs: Marvin Webster 23 Asts: Fred Brown 4 |
| Seattle leads series, 2–1 |||
* Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington Attendance: 14,098
* April 26
* Boxscore
Portland Trail Blazers 98, Seattle SuperSonics 100 :
| Scoring by quarter: 28–28, 29–17, 24–28, 17–27 |||
| Pts: Lionel Hollins 35 Rebs: Maurice Lucas 16 Asts: Tom Owens 8 | Pts: Jack Sikma 28 Rebs: Jack Sikma 10 Asts: Dennis Johnson 8 |
| Seattle leads series, 3–1 |||
* Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington Attendance: 14,098
* April 30
* Boxscore
Seattle SuperSonics 89, Portland Trail Blazers 113 :
| Scoring by quarter: 13–25, 21–27, 23–27, 32–34 |||
| Pts: Marvin Webster 16 Rebs: Paul Silas 10 Asts: Gus Williams 4 | Pts: Tom Owens 31 Rebs: Maurice Lucas 13 Asts: Davis, Owens 6 each |
| Seattle leads series, 3–2 |||
* Memorial Coliseum, Portland, Oregon Attendance: 12,666
* May 1
* Boxscore
Portland Trail Blazers 94, Seattle SuperSonics 105 :
| Scoring by quarter: 22–26, 27–29, 20–20, 25–30 |||
| Pts: Johnny Davis 23 Rebs: Maurice Lucas 12 Asts: Lionel Hollins 9 | Pts: Dennis Johnson 20 Rebs: Marvin Webster 11 Asts: Gus Williams 7 |
| Seattle wins series, 4–2 |||
* Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington Attendance: 14,098
This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.

#### (2) Denver Nuggets vs. (6) Milwaukee Bucks

* April 18
* Boxscore
Milwaukee Bucks 103, Denver Nuggets 119 :
| Scoring by quarter: 28–34, 34–29, 20–28, 21–28 |||
| Pts: Alex English 26 Rebs: Dave Meyers 15 Asts: Brian Winters 11 | Pts: David Thompson 27 Rebs: Dan Issel 12 Asts: David Thompson 6 |
| Denver leads series, 1–0 |||
* McNichols Sports Arena, Denver, Colorado Attendance: 17,297
* April 21
* Boxscore
Milwaukee Bucks 111, Denver Nuggets 127 :
| Scoring by quarter: 35–32, 18–31, 23–39, 35–25 |||
| Pts: Marques Johnson 22 Rebs: Johnson, Meyers 5 each Asts: Lloyd Walton 8 | Pts: Dan Issel 22 Rebs: Dan Issel 14 Asts: Issel, Calvin 6 each |
| Denver leads series, 2–0 |||
* McNichols Sports Arena, Denver, Colorado Attendance: 17,838
* April 23
* Boxscore
Denver Nuggets 112, Milwaukee Bucks 143 :
| Scoring by quarter: 22–26, 28–30, 26–40, 36–47 |||
| Pts: three players 16 each Rebs: Anthony Roberts 8 Asts: David Thompson 5 | Pts: Marques Johnson 35 Rebs: Marques Johnson 10 Asts: Lloyd Walton 11 |
| Denver leads series, 2–1 |||
* MECCA Arena, Milwaukee, Wisconsin Attendance: 10,938
* April 25
* Boxscore
Denver Nuggets 118, Milwaukee Bucks 104 :
| Scoring by quarter: 27–22, 30–17, 33–22, 28–43 |||
| Pts: David Thompson 34 Rebs: Dan Issel 14 Asts: Wilkerson, Simpson 5 each | Pts: Johnson, Winters 14 each Rebs: Marques Johnson 7 Asts: Brian Winters 6 |
| Denver leads series, 3–1 |||
* MECCA Arena, Milwaukee, Wisconsin Attendance: 10,938
* April 28
* Boxscore
Milwaukee Bucks 117, Denver Nuggets 112 :
| Scoring by quarter: 31–28, 19–26, 28–32, 39–26 |||
| Pts: Marques Johnson 34 Rebs: Marques Johnson 17 Asts: Winters, Buckner 9 each | Pts: Bobby Jones 25 Rebs: Dan Issel 15 Asts: Bob Wilkerson 8 |
| Denver leads series, 3–2 |||
* McNichols Sports Arena, Denver, Colorado Attendance: 17,838
* April 30
* Boxscore
Denver Nuggets 91, Milwaukee Bucks 119 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–33, 21–29, 20–30, 24–27 |||
| Pts: David Thompson 28 Rebs: Bobby Jones 10 Asts: Bob Wilkerson 6 | Pts: Alex English 21 Rebs: Marques Johnson 17 Asts: Marques Johnson 9 |
| Series tied, 3–3 |||
* MECCA Arena, Milwaukee, Wisconsin Attendance: 10,938
* May 3
* Boxscore
Milwaukee Bucks 110, Denver Nuggets 116 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–34, 30–32, 25–29, 29–21 |||
| Pts: Brian Winters 27 Rebs: Marques Johnson 16 Asts: Quinn Buckner 10 | Pts: David Thompson 37 Rebs: Bob Wilkerson 12 Asts: David Thompson 6 |
| Denver wins series, 4–3 |||
* McNichols Sports Arena, Denver, Colorado Attendance: 17,838
This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.

## Conference finals
### Eastern Conference finals
#### (1) Philadelphia 76ers vs. (3) Washington Bullets

* April 30
* Boxscore
Washington Bullets 122, Philadelphia 76ers 117 (OT) :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–19, 21–28, 30–34, 32–28, Overtime: 13–8 |||
| Pts: Elvin Hayes 28 Rebs: Elvin Hayes 18 Asts: Tom Henderson 9 | Pts: Julius Erving 25 Rebs: George McGinnis 15 Asts: three players 5 each |
| Washington leads series, 1–0 |||
* Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Attendance: 13,708
* 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 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–28, 28–24, 22–32, 28–26 |||
| Pts: Elvin Hayes 26 Rebs: Elvin Hayes 15 Asts: Wright, Henderson 8 each | Pts: Doug Collins 28 Rebs: Erving, Dawkins 11 each Asts: Henry Bibby 9 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Attendance: 18,276
* May 5
* Boxscore
Philadelphia 76ers 108, Washington Bullets 123 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–28, 19–34, 36–30, 27–31 |||
| Pts: George McGinnis 16 Rebs: Julius Erving 10 Asts: Henry Bibby 5 | Pts: Bob Dandridge 30 Rebs: Elvin Hayes 12 Asts: Bob Dandridge 7 |
| Washington leads series, 2–1 |||
* Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland Attendance: 19,035
* May 7
* Boxscore
Philadelphia 76ers 105, Washington Bullets 121 :
| Scoring by quarter: 28–23, 20–31, 26–27, 31–40 |||
| Pts: Julius Erving 24 Rebs: Caldwell Jones 13 Asts: World B. Free 6 | Pts: Elvin Hayes 35 Rebs: Elvin Hayes 19 Asts: four players 6 each |
| Washington leads series, 3–1 |||
* Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland Attendance: 19,035
* Wes Unseld returns to the lineup.
* May 10
* Boxscore
Washington Bullets 94, Philadelphia 76ers 107 :
| Scoring by quarter: 12–23, 29–29, 21–30, 32–25 |||
| Pts: Larry Wright 18 Rebs: Hayes, Unseld 16 each Asts: Wes Unseld 5 | Pts: Collins, Erving 24 each Rebs: Caldwell Jones 15 Asts: Henry Bibby 10 |
| Washington leads series, 3–2 |||
* Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Attendance: 18,276
* May 12
* Boxscore
Philadelphia 76ers 99, Washington Bullets 101 :
| Scoring by quarter: 27–24, 23–27, 26–33, 23–17 |||
| Pts: Doug Collins 33 Rebs: Erving, McGinnis 8 each Asts: Henry Bibby 5 | Pts: Bob Dandridge 28 Rebs: Wes Unseld 15 Asts: Tom Henderson 6 |
| Washington wins series, 4–2 |||
* Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland Attendance: 19,035
This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Bullets winning the first meeting while in Baltimore.
Baltimore/Washington leads 1–0 in all-time playoff series :
1971
Philadelphia 76ers 3, Baltimore Bullets 4
1971 Eastern Conference Semifinals :

### Western Conference finals
#### (2) Denver Nuggets vs. (4) Seattle SuperSonics

* May 5
* Boxscore
Seattle SuperSonics 107, Denver Nuggets 116 :
| Scoring by quarter: 27–30, 23–27, 27–23, 30–36 |||
| Pts: Marvin Webster 28 Rebs: Marvin Webster 16 Asts: Gus Williams 8 | Pts: Dan Issel 25 Rebs: Issel, Hillman 11 each Asts: Bob Wilkerson 10 |
| Denver leads series, 1–0 |||
* McNichols Sports Arena, Denver, Colorado Attendance: 17,387
* May 7
* Boxscore
Seattle SuperSonics 121, Denver Nuggets 111 :
| Scoring by quarter: 30–38, 31–18, 22–25, 38–30 |||
| Pts: Fred Brown 26 Rebs: Paul Silas 12 Asts: Fred Brown 6 | Pts: Dan Issel 29 Rebs: Dan Issel 14 Asts: Ralph Simpson 7 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* McNichols Sports Arena, Denver, Colorado Attendance: 17,838
* May 10
* Boxscore
Denver Nuggets 91, Seattle SuperSonics 105 :
| Scoring by quarter: 30–30, 20–31, 24–16, 17–28 |||
| Pts: David Thompson 21 Rebs: Anthony Roberts 8 Asts: Jones, Webster 3 each | Pts: John Johnson 20 Rebs: Marvin Webster 16 Asts: D. Johnson, Webster 3 each |
| Seattle leads series, 2–1 |||
* Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington Attendance: 14,098
* May 12
* Boxscore
Denver Nuggets 94, Seattle SuperSonics 100 :
| Scoring by quarter: 27–33, 31–17, 18–23, 18–27 |||
| Pts: Dan Issel 27 Rebs: Darnell Hillman 11 Asts: Bob Wilkerson 8 | Pts: Dennis Johnson 31 Rebs: Paul Silas 14 Asts: John Johnson 7 |
| Seattle leads series, 3–1 |||
* Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington Attendance: 14,098
* May 14
* Boxscore
Seattle SuperSonics 114, Denver Nuggets 123 :
| Scoring by quarter: 24–35, 20–26, 39–27, 31–35 |||
| Pts: Gus Williams 31 Rebs: Marvin Webster 12 Asts: Williams, J. Johnson 6 each | Pts: David Thompson 35 Rebs: Bobby Jones 11 Asts: Bob Wilkerson 10 |
| Seattle leads series, 3–2 |||
* McNichols Sports Arena, Denver, Colorado Attendance: 17,006
* May 17
* Boxscore
Denver Nuggets 108, Seattle SuperSonics 123 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–39, 28–23, 18–31, 36–30 |||
| Pts: David Thompson 21 Rebs: Anthony Roberts 16 Asts: Bob Wilkerson 8 | Pts: Fred Brown 26 Rebs: Paul Silas 13 Asts: Dennis Johnson 7 |
| Seattle wins series, 4–2 |||
* Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington Attendance: 14,098
This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.

## NBA Finals: (W4) Seattle SuperSonics vs. (E3) Washington Bullets

* May 21
* Boxscore
Washington Bullets 102, Seattle SuperSonics 106 :
| Scoring by quarter: 31–25, 27–24, 26–24, 18–33 |||
| Pts: Kevin Grevey 27 Rebs: Elvin Hayes 9 Asts: Tom Henderson 7 | Pts: Fred Brown 30 Rebs: Marvin Webster 14 Asts: Dennis Johnson 5 |
| Seattle leads series, 1–0 |||
* Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington Attendance: 14,098 Referees: Darell Garretson, Ed Rush
* "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 :
| Scoring by quarter: 16–29, 36–27, 19–24, 27–26 |||
| Pts: Gus Williams 24 Rebs: Marvin Webster 12 Asts: three players 4 each | Pts: Bob Dandridge 34 Rebs: Wes Unseld 15 Asts: Henderson, Unseld 5 each |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland Attendance: 19,035 Referees: Joe Gushue, Jake O'Donnell
* May 28
* Boxscore
Seattle SuperSonics 93, Washington Bullets 92 :
| Scoring by quarter: 24–24, 25–23, 20–20, 24–25 |||
| Pts: Webster, Williams 20 each Rebs: Paul Silas 14 Asts: five players 2 each | Pts: Elvin Hayes 29 Rebs: Elvin Hayes 20 Asts: Bob Dandridge 6 |
| Seattle leads series, 2–1 |||
* Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland Attendance: 19,035 Referees: Earl Strom, John Vanak
* May 30
* Boxscore
Washington Bullets 120, Seattle SuperSonics 116 (OT) :
| Scoring by quarter: 23–25, 25–31, 30–31, 28–19, Overtime: 14–10 |||
| Pts: Bob Dandridge 23 Rebs: Elvin Hayes 13 Asts: Tom Henderson 11 | Pts: Dennis Johnson 33 Rebs: Marvin Webster 15 Asts: Paul Silas 6 |
| Series tied, 2–2 |||
* Kingdome, Seattle, Washington Attendance: 39,457 Referees: Jack Madden, Don Murphy
* June 2
* Boxscore
Washington Bullets 94, Seattle SuperSonics 98 :
| Scoring by quarter: 24–23, 17–29, 26–24, 27–22 |||
| Pts: Kevin Grevey 22 Rebs: Bob Dandridge 10 Asts: Tom Henderson 6 | Pts: Fred Brown 26 Rebs: Marvin Webster 13 Asts: John Johnson 7 |
| Seattle leads series, 3–2 |||
* Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington Attendance: 14,098 Referees: Joe Gushue, Jake O'Donnell
* June 4
* Boxscore
Seattle SuperSonics 82, Washington Bullets 117 :
| Scoring by quarter: 21–19, 14–28, 26–37, 21–33 |||
| Pts: Fred Brown 17 Rebs: Marvin Webster 12 Asts: Gus Williams 6 | Pts: Elvin Hayes 21 Rebs: Elvin Hayes 15 Asts: Greg Ballard 6 |
| Series tied, 3–3 |||
* Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland Attendance: 19,035 Referees: Darell Garretson, Don Murphy
* June 7
* Boxscore
Washington Bullets 105, Seattle SuperSonics 99 :
| Scoring by quarter: 31–28, 22–17, 26–21, 26–33 |||
| Pts: Dandridge, C. Johnson 19 each Rebs: Wes Unseld 9 Asts: Wes Unseld 6 | Pts: Marvin Webster 27 Rebs: Marvin Webster 19 Asts: Gus Williams 5 |
| Washington wins series, 4–3 |||
* Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington Attendance: 14,098 Referees: Jack Madden, Earl Strom
* 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.