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| Dates | May 22–31 | |||||||||
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| MVP | Moses Malone (Philadelphia 76ers) | |||||||||
| Hall of Famers | 76ers: Maurice Cheeks (2018) Julius Erving (1993) Bobby Jones (2019) Moses Malone (2001) Lakers: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1995) Michael Cooper (2024) Magic Johnson (2002) Bob McAdoo (2000) Jamaal Wilkes (2012) James Worthy (2003; did not play) Coaches: Billy Cunningham (1986, player) Pat Riley (2008) Broadcasters: Chick Hearn (2003, contributor) Officials: Hugh Evans (2022) Darell Garretson (2016) Earl Strom (1995) | |||||||||
| Eastern finals | 76ers defeatedBucks, 4–1 | |||||||||
| Western finals | Lakers defeatedSpurs, 4–2 | |||||||||
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The1983 NBA World Championship Series, also known asShowdown '83, was the championship round of theNational Basketball Association (NBA)'s1982–83 season, and the culmination of theseason's playoffs. It was the last NBA Championship Series completed before June 1. TheEastern Conference championPhiladelphia 76ers swept theWestern Conference championLos Angeles Lakers to win their third NBA championship. After their previousfour final meetings, the 76ers returned the favor.
76ers centerMoses Malone was named theNBA Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP). This, along with the1989 NBA Finals, were the only two NBA championships of the 1980s not to be won by either the Lakers or theBoston Celtics; every NBA Finals of that decade featured either the Lakers or Celtics, and sometimes both (1984,1985,1987). Coincidentally, the Lakers were also swept in the 1989 NBA Finals, that time by theDetroit Pistons.
The 76ers lost their first two Finals meetings with the Lakers in1980 and1982. WhileJulius Erving played superbly in both series, their frontcourt ofDarryl Dawkins,Caldwell Jones, andBobby Jones couldn't neutralizeKareem Abdul-Jabbar. So in the off-season, the 76ers acquiredMoses Malone from theHouston Rockets in an effort to counter Abdul-Jabbar, in addition to providing some offense and rebounding to the team. They parted ways with Caldwell Jones, Dawkins, andLionel Hollins before the season, while giving greater responsibility to high-scoring guardAndrew Toney and backup playmakerClint Richardson, and adding forwardsClemon Johnson and rookieMarc Iavaroni.
Malone's acquisition paid dividends, as the 76ers won 65 games in the1982–83 NBA season. Prior to theplayoffs, Malone predicted the team would win in four games in each of the three rounds, ending it with the statementFo, Fo, Fo. The 76ers would steamroll through the playoffs, sweeping theNew York Knicks 4–0 in the conference semifinals, before overcoming theMilwaukee Bucks in five games.
The Lakers earned the top pick of the1982 NBA draft, becoming the only defending champion to earn the top overall pick in the same season. This was becauseCleveland Cavaliers ownerTed Stepien traded their first round pick andButch Lee to the Lakers forDon Ford and draft pickChad Kinchthree years earlier. Because the Cavaliers earned the worst record at 15–67, they would have earned the top overall pick via a coin toss with the 17–65San Diego Clippers. Instead, the Lakers would earn the top pick and ultimately selected futureHall of FamerJames Worthy first overall.
The Lakers won 58 games the next season. Worthy was a strong contender forRookie of the Year when he broke his leg late in the season, therefore missing the rest of the season and the playoffs. Despite Worthy's absence, Magic Johnson, already a top-level guard, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, 35 and still in his prime, led the Lakers back to the Finals. They beat thePortland Trail Blazers 4–1 and theSan Antonio Spurs 4–2 in the second and third playoff rounds, respectively.
| Los Angeles Lakers (Western Conference champion) | Philadelphia 76ers (Eastern Conference champion) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Regular season |
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| Earned first-round bye | First round | Earned first-round bye | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Defeated the (5)Portland Trail Blazers, 4–1 | Conference semifinals | Defeated the (5)New York Knicks, 4–0 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Defeated the (2)San Antonio Spurs, 4–2 | Conference finals | Defeated the (2)Milwaukee Bucks, 4–1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
ThePhiladelphia 76ers won both games in the regular season series:
| Game | Date | Home team | Result | Road team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Game 1 | May 22 | Philadelphia 76ers | 113–107 (1–0) | Los Angeles Lakers |
| Game 2 | May 26 | Philadelphia 76ers | 103–93 (2–0) | Los Angeles Lakers |
| Game 3 | May 29 | Los Angeles Lakers | 94–111 (0–3) | Philadelphia 76ers |
| Game 4 | May 31 | Los Angeles Lakers | 108–115 (0–4) | Philadelphia 76ers |
The final piece of thePhiladelphia 76ers' championship puzzle was completed before the 1982–83 season when they acquired centerMoses Malone from theHouston Rockets. They went on to capture their third NBA championship as they won 65 games, and stormed through theplayoffs, first sweeping theNew York Knicks, and then beating theMilwaukee Bucks in five games. They finally finished it off with a four-game sweep of theLos Angeles Lakers, who had defeated them the season before.
Said head coachBilly Cunningham,"The difference from last year was Moses." Malone was named MVP of the 1983 Finals, as well as league MVP for the third time in his career. The 76ers completed one of the most dominating playoff runs in league history with a 12–1 mark after league and NBA Finals MVP Moses promised"Fo', fo', fo" (as in"four, four, four"—four wins to win round 1, four wins to win round 2, etc.), but it actually wound up as"Fo', fi', fo." (four, five, four). The 76ers were also led byJulius Erving,Maurice Cheeks,Andrew Toney, andBobby Jones.
With 59 seconds to go in Game 4, it was Erving who made a three-point play to hold the lead for good, crushing the Lakers in a four-game sweep and ending the last NBA Finals to end before June.
Until thePhillies won the2008 World Series over theTampa Bay Rays 4–1, this was the last time a team from Philadelphia in theBig Four leagues won their league's championship.
May 22 3:35 p.m. EDT |
| Los Angeles Lakers 107,Philadelphia 76ers 113 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 20–30,37–24, 26–31, 24–28 | ||
| Pts:Norm Nixon 26 Rebs:Mark Landsberger 10 Asts:Magic Johnson 11 | Pts:Moses Malone 27 Rebs:Moses Malone 18 Asts:Julius Erving 9 | |
| Philadelphia leads the series, 1–0 | ||
May 26 9:05 p.m. EDT |
| Los Angeles Lakers 93,Philadelphia 76ers 103 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:29–26,26–25, 20–28, 18–24 | ||
| Pts:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 23 Rebs:Magic Johnson 8 Asts:Magic Johnson 13 | Pts:Moses Malone 24 Rebs:Moses Malone 12 Asts:Maurice Cheeks 8 | |
| Philadelphia leads the series, 2–0 | ||
The Spectrum,Philadelphia,Pennsylvania Attendance: 18,482 Referees:
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May 29 12:35 p.m. PDT |
| Philadelphia 76ers 111,Los Angeles Lakers 94 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 21–32,28–20,23–20,39–22 | ||
| Pts:Moses Malone 28 Rebs:Moses Malone 19 Asts:Moses Malone 6 | Pts:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 23 Rebs:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 15 Asts:Magic Johnson 13 | |
| Philadelphia leads the series, 3–0 | ||
The Forum,Inglewood,California Attendance: 17,505 Referees:
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May 31 6:05 p.m. PDT |
| Philadelphia 76ers 115,Los Angeles Lakers 108 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 24–26, 27–39,31–28,33–15 | ||
| Pts:Moses Malone 24 Rebs:Moses Malone 23 Asts:Andrew Toney 9 | Pts:Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 28 Rebs:Abdul-Jabbar,Johnson,Landsberger,McGee 7 each Asts:Magic Johnson 15 | |
| Philadelphia wins the series, 4–0 | ||
The Forum,Inglewood,California Attendance: 17,505 Referees:
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| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game |
| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andrew Toney | 4 | 4 | 36.8 | .423 | .000 | .848 | 2.3 | 5.8 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 22.0 |
| Moses Malone | 4 | 4 | 39.3 | .507 | .000 | .660 | 18.0 | 2.0 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 25.8 |
| Maurice Cheeks | 4 | 4 | 35.8 | .553 | .000 | .600 | 2.3 | 6.3 | 2.8 | 0.0 | 15.3 |
| Bobby Jones | 4 | 0 | 26.0 | .568 | .000 | .667 | 4.8 | 2.8 | 2.0 | 2.3 | 12.0 |
| Marc Iavaroni | 4 | 4 | 24.8 | .588 | .000 | .375 | 5.5 | 2.0 | 0.3 | 0.8 | 5.8 |
| Julius Erving | 4 | 4 | 38.3 | .469 | .000 | .800 | 8.5 | 5.0 | 1.3 | 2.8 | 19.0 |
| Clint Richardson | 4 | 0 | 23.0 | .393 | .000 | .750 | 3.3 | 1.8 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 6.3 |
| Clemon Johnson | 3 | 0 | 12.7 | .385 | .000 | .000 | 3.0 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 3.3 |
| Earl Cureton | 3 | 0 | 6.3 | .333 | .000 | .000 | 1.0 | 0.3 | 0.7 | 0.0 | 0.7 |
| Mark McNamara | 1 | 0 | 1.0 | 1.000 | .000 | .000 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 4.0 |
| Reggie Johnson | 1 | 0 | 1.0 | .000 | .000 | .000 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Franklin Edwards | 3 | 0 | 1.0 | .000 | .000 | 1.000 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.7 |
| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bob McAdoo | 2 | 0 | 21.0 | .409 | .500 | 1.000 | 7.0 | 0.5 | 2.5 | 1.0 | 11.0 |
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 4 | 4 | 38.8 | .552 | .000 | .769 | 7.5 | 3.0 | 0.8 | 2.3 | 23.5 |
| Jamaal Wilkes | 4 | 4 | 39.3 | .461 | .000 | .571 | 5.8 | 1.8 | 2.0 | 1.3 | 18.5 |
| Norm Nixon | 3 | 3 | 36.7 | .405 | .000 | .636 | 2.7 | 4.7 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 13.7 |
| Michael Cooper | 4 | 1 | 31.5 | .486 | .333 | .833 | 3.5 | 1.8 | 1.5 | 0.3 | 10.0 |
| Kurt Rambis | 4 | 4 | 21.3 | .480 | .000 | .778 | 4.5 | 0.8 | 0.5 | 1.5 | 7.8 |
| Mark Landsberger | 4 | 0 | 14.0 | .400 | .000 | 1.000 | 5.0 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 2.5 |
| Magic Johnson | 4 | 4 | 44.8 | .408 | .000 | .929 | 7.8 | 12.5 | 1.8 | 0.5 | 19.0 |
| Clay Johnson | 3 | 0 | 4.0 | .600 | .000 | .000 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 2.0 |
| Mike McGee | 2 | 0 | 10.0 | .333 | .000 | .000 | 3.5 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 3.0 |
| Dwight Jones | 2 | 0 | 8.5 | .125 | .000 | .000 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 |
| Steve Mix | 1 | 0 | 1.0 | .000 | .000 | .000 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
The 1983 NBA Finals was broadcast byCBS.Dick Stockton andBill Russell were the commentators andBrent Musburger was the host, withKevin Loughery as a pre-game, halftime and post-game analyst. It also introduced a new theme music (composed by Allyson Bellink) for theCBS Sports coverage of the NBA, used an introduction of the NBA arenas (similar to theBoston Garden) until the1989 playoffs and later revived the second theme beginning in the1989 Finals.[2]
Russell departed CBS following the series, and was replaced by former Celtics teammateTom Heinsohn. Russell would later resurface as a color analyst onTBS until 1987.
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