The1978 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of theNational Basketball Association (NBA)'s1977–78 season, and the culmination of theseason's playoffs. The series featured theWestern Conference championSeattle SuperSonics against theEastern Conference championWashington Bullets. The Bullets defeated the SuperSonics in seven games to win their first NBA championship. Bulletspower forward/centerWes Unseld was namedMVP of the series. The 1978 World Championship Series was the first NBA Finals series since the1958 World Championship Series in which both teams had under 50 wins, and is the only NBA Finals to feature two teams with under 50 wins in an 82-game season.

The 1978 Bullets were the last team to win Game 7 of the NBA Finals on the road until theLeBron James-ledCleveland Cavaliers did so in2016.

The Seattle SuperSonics had a disappointing start to the season, going 5–17 to begin with.Bob Hopkins, who replaced formerBoston Celtics centerBill Russell as coach, was fired andLenny Wilkens returned for a second tour of duty. The Sonics were led by rookie forwardJack Sikma, center Marvin Webster, forwards,Paul Silas andJohn Johnson, and guardsDennis Johnson andGus Williams andFred Brown. With Wilkens' experience being a key factor, the Sonics turned their season around, finishing with 47 wins and the fourth seed in the West. In the playoffs, they defeated theLos Angeles Lakers in a three-game miniseries, then upset the top-seeded anddefending championPortland Trail Blazers (who lost centerBill Walton in the second game of the series) in six games, before a six-game win over theDenver Nuggets in the Conference finals sent them to their first of back-to-back NBA Finals appearances.

The Washington Bullets franchise made the Finals twice before in the 1970s, but were swept on both occasions, first by theMilwaukee Bucks in1971 when they were still inBaltimore, and then by theCinderellaGolden State Warriors in1975. The Bullets kept some of the personnel from that 1975 team, including All-StarsWes Unseld andElvin Hayes, butDick Motta was now in his second year of coaching duty. The Bullets struggled with injuries during the season, but managed to finish with 44 wins, good for the third seed in the East. In the playoffs, the Bullets disposed theAtlanta Hawks in a two-game first round series, then ousted theSan Antonio Spurs in six games, before making the finals again with a six-game win over the defending Eastern Conference championPhiladelphia 76ers.

From aKENS-TV Spurs broadcast in the San Antonio series after Washington took a 3–1 lead, Motta adopted the expression "The 'opera' isn't over 'til the fat lady sings" to warn Bullets fans againstbraggadocio. Motta also used an upbeatostinato, "Wait for the fat lady!", to encourage the fans.

Washington won the regular season series 3–1.

Bullets win series 4–3

The Bullets, behindKevin Grevey's 27 andElvin Hayes's 21 points, held a 19-point lead in the fourth quarter at theSeattle Center Coliseum. But, the Sonics staged a comeback in front of the home crowd, led by "instant offense" guardFred Brown. Brown scored 16 points in the last nine minutes to finish with 30 and give the SuperSonics the win.^[1]

In an unusual 1–2–2–1–1 scheduling format, the next two games were played at theCapital Centre, the Bullets' home floor.Wes Unseld defended inside onMarvin Webster andJack Sikma, pulled down 15 rebounds, and handed out five assists. This work enabledBob Dandridge to score 34 points andElvin Hayes 25 as the Bullets evened the series, winning their first NBA Finals game following nine consecutive losses.^[2]

Dennis Johnson was superb on defense, blocking seven shots and holdingKevin Grevey to 1-for-14 shooting.Paul Silas, the SuperSonics' veteran leader off the bench, helped shut down the Bullets' big men.

With 10 seconds remaining and the SuperSonics leading 93–90, Johnson's inbounds pass was stolen byTom Henderson, who scored to make it 93–92 with five seconds left. Silas then stepped on the baseline trying to make the subsequent inbounds pass (even though replays showed he was clearly behind the baseline when he released the ball), turning the ball over to the Bullets.Bob Dandridge missed at the buzzer, however, and the SuperSonics picked up a victory on the road.^[3]

Game 4 was held in theSeattle Kingdome because theSeattle Center Coliseum was tied up with a mobile-home show. As a result, the Bullets had to contend with a then-record playoff crowd of over 39,000 fans.

The SuperSonics led by 15 with two minutes left in the third quarter. At this point, the Bullet guards, who had been victimized all series byGus Williams and emerging starDennis Johnson, started to assert themselves, especially reservesCharles Johnson andLarry Wright.

At the start of the final period,Dennis Johnson was elbowed hard in the ribs and left the game for a short time. WithCharles Johnson, Wright,Mitch Kupchak andBob Dandridge in the lineup, the Bullets stormed back and took a 103–101 lead with about 3.5 minutes left in the game.Dennis Johnson then returned and went on a barrage, scoring first to tie the game, blocking a Dandridge shot, getting an offensive rebound, and pushing the Sonics to a 104–103 lead with a foul shot. Johnson would finish with 33 points, seven rebounds and three blocks.

Dandridge answered with a three-point play that returned the lead to Washington, 106–104. Seattle got the ball back and tied it with "instant offense"Fred Brown's jumper from "downtown". With two seconds left, Dandridge got a good shot in the lane, only to have Johnson block it, forcing overtime. But then,Charles Johnson became an instant hero by hitting three quick shots in overtime to give the Bullets a 120–116 win. The Bullets had tied the series at two wins apiece.^[4]

The SuperSonics returned to theSeattle Center Coliseum and eked out a close win. "Downtown"Freddie Brown had 26 points andDennis Johnson 24 to carry Seattle to a 98–94 win and the series lead. The Bullets lost it at the line, making only 9 of 20 free throws in the second half. Even so, they cut Seattle's 11-point lead to two with less than two minutes to go beforeJack Sikma hit three free throws down the stretch.^[5]

Game 6, in Washington, was all Bullets, 117–82. With the Washington backcourt continuing to struggle, Bullets coachDick Motta insertedGreg Ballard at forward and movedBob Dandridge to guard, a risky move considering Dandridge had played very little guard. Ballard and Dandridge produced a run that gave the Bullets a 12-point lead at the half. Washington scored 70 points in the second half, and the SuperSonics weren't up to that pace.Mitch Kupchak added 19 points, and Ballard had 12 points and 12 rebounds. The 35-point margin of victory was an NBA Finals record that stood until the1998 NBA Finals Game 3 (Chicago defeated Utah 96–54, 42 points).^[6]

Dennis Johnson, who before the 1977–78 playoffs was a relatively unknown guard fromPepperdine University, had grown into a star in this series in front of a national TV audience. However, DJ would miss every one of his 14 shots in this game. Fellow guardGus Williams was a bit more accurate, shooting 4-for-12. SuperSonics big menMarvin Webster scored 27 points andJack Sikma 21 to take up the slack, and that kept it close.

With 90 seconds left, Seattle whittled the lead from 11 points down to four, butMitch Kupchak came up with a three-point play.Fred Brown, who finished with 21 points off the bench, hit a short jumper, thenPaul Silas got a tip-in to cut it to 101–99. Silas then fouledWes Unseld, a 55-percent shooter from the line during the playoffs. He hit two free throws, and moments later Washington sealed it with aBob Dandridge dunk, 105–99.

Charles Johnson and Dandridge each scored 19 points for the Bullets, whileElvin Hayes fouled out with 12 points, a development that brought a couple of needling questions from the writers about his past failures in the playoffs and Hayes' cheerful comeback "Whatever else they can say about me, they also got to say E's a world champion. E wears the ring." Unseld would be named Finals MVP.^[7]

After the climactic Game 7 victory, Motta celebrated with his team wearing a beer-soakedThe Opera Isn't Over 'Til The Fat Lady Sings T-shirt. He said, "What made the championship so great was that we weren't supposed to win it. We came a long way. Most people didn't give us a chance, but I felt all along we could. I really did."^[8]

This was the last time the road team won Game 7 of the NBA Finals until theCleveland Cavaliers did so in2016.

Washington Bullets

Seattle SuperSonics

Nationwide TV coverage of the 1978 NBA finals was broadcast byCBS Sports, withBrent Musburger (All Games) on play-by-play andRick Barry (All Games),Steve Jones (Game 1), recently retiredJohn Havlicek (Games 2, 4 and 7),Gus Johnson (Game 3) andKeith Erickson (Games 4 and 5) on color commentary. Locally, the 1978 NBA Finals was broadcast byCBS affiliates:WTOP-TV in Washington, D.C., andKIRO-TV inSeattle, Washington.

Nationwide radio coverage of the 1978 NBA Finals was broadcast byMutual, withTony Roberts on play-by-play andHubie Brown on color commentary.

Theflagship stations of each station of each team carried their local play-by-play calls. In Washington, D.C.,WTOP-AM carried the series, withFrank Herzog on play-by-play. In Seattle,KOMO, carried the series withBob Blackburn on play-by-play.

Days after the Game 7 win (the first for a Washington D.C.–based team in 36 years), an estimated 100,000 fans lined an 11-mile parade route fromCapital Centre inLandover, Maryland, toWashington, D.C. with the District Building, theWhite House, the Capitol andRFK Stadium.^[9]

The NBA received much criticism over the fact that the seven-game series was stretched out over 18 days, presumably for television; it remains the longest playoff series (in total number of days) ever played in any sport (even the1989 World Series, interrupted for ten days by anearthquake, lasted only 15 days. However, that series ended in a sweep and, had it gone the full seven games, would have lasted 19 days). The1984 NBA Finals nearly matched it by lasting 16 days. The2016 NBA Finals, in which the road team won Game 7 for the first time since 1978, lasted a record 18 days. The2025 NBA Finals, which featured the team known previously as theSeattle SuperSonics, also lasted 18 days.

Both teams met again in the1979 finals, which Seattle won four games to one.

• 1978 NBA playoffs
• 1977-78 NBA season

• NBA History

• NBA Finals
• Washington Bullets games
• Seattle SuperSonics games
• 1977–78 NBA season
• May 1978 sports events in the United States
• June 1978 sports events in the United States
• 1970s in Seattle
• 1978 in sports in Washington, D.C.
• 1978 in sports in Washington (state)
• Basketball competitions in Seattle

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