1982 NBA Finals

1982 NBA Finals
TeamCoachWins
Los Angeles Lakers Pat Riley 4
Philadelphia 76ers Billy Cunningham 2
Dates May 27 – June 8
MVP Magic Johnson
(Los Angeles Lakers)
Television CBS (U.S.)
Announcers Dick Stockton and Bill Russell
Referees
Game 1: Jake O'Donnell, Hugh Evans
Game 2: Darell Garretson, Earl Strom
Game 3: Ed T. Rush, Wally Rooney
Game 4: Jack Madden, Paul Mihalak
Game 5: Jake O'Donnell, Ed T. Rush
Game 6: Darell Garretson, Jack Madden
Hall of Famers Lakers:
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1995)
Magic Johnson (2002)
Bob McAdoo (2000)
Jamaal Wilkes (2012)
76ers:
Julius Erving (1993)
Coaches:
Billy Cunningham (1986, player)
Pat Riley (2008)
Officials:
Darell Garretson (2016)
Earl Strom (1995)
Eastern Finals 76ers defeat Celtics, 4-3
Western Finals Lakers defeat Spurs, 4-0

The 1982 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1981-82 NBA season, the top level of competition in men's professional basketball in North America. The series saw the Los Angeles Lakers face the Philadelphia 76ers. It was a rematch of the 1980 NBA Finals, which the Lakers won 4-2.

The 1982 NBA Finals documentary "Something To Prove" recaps all the action of this series. It was the last NBA video documentary to exclusively use film in all on-court action. Dick Stockton narrated the documentary, with the condensed USA Network version narrated by Al Albert.

The series ended June 8, later than any previous NBA Finals. The previous record was June 7, 1978. This record was eclipsed two years later when the finals ended on June 12, 1984.

Background

Los Angeles Lakers

The Lakers were stunned in the 1981 NBA Playoffs by the Houston Rockets in a 3-game mini-series. The previous season saw the Lakers in a state of uncertainty, after Magic Johnson missed 45 games due to a knee injury. Their problems continued early in the new season, and with the team at 7–4 the Lakers decided to fire head coach Paul Westhead. Taking over as head coach was Pat Riley, and his promotion to the job led to the birth of the Showtime offense.

With a healthy Johnson and the additions of Kurt Rambis and Bob McAdoo, the Lakers rallied to finish with a 57–25 record, best in the Western Conference. They were even more flawless in the playoffs as they both swept the Phoenix Suns in the Western Conference Semifinals, and the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference Finals.

Philadelphia 76ers

Like the Lakers, the 76ers were coming off a heartbreaking playoff defeat, as they blew a 3–1 lead and lost to the eventual champion Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference finals. Not much was changed for the 76ers roster-wise and record-wise in the new season, however, as the team finished second behind the Celtics in the Atlantic Division for the third straight year.

Due to an then-existing rule where division winners would earn a first-round bye, the 76ers were forced to play a best-of-three miniseries, even though their 58–24 record was three games better than the Central Division champion Milwaukee Bucks. Nevertheless, Philadelphia easily swept the Atlanta Hawks 2-0 in the first round, then ousted the Bucks in the next round 4-2. In the Eastern Conference finals, the 76ers blew out the Celtics twice at The Spectrum to take a 3–1 lead, only to lose the next two games in a harrowing replay of the 1981 playoffs. But led by Andrew Toney's 34 points, the 76ers exorcised the demons of 1981 by blowing out the Celtics 120–106 in Game 7. As time wound down, the Boston Garden crowd began to chant "Beat L.A.!", encouraging the 76ers to defeat the hated Lakers in the championship round.

Road to the Finals

Main article: 1982 NBA Playoffs
Los Angeles Lakers (Western Conference Champion)Philadelphia 76ers (Eastern Conference Champion)
# Western Conference
Team W L PCT GB
1 c-Los Angeles Lakers 57 25 .695
2 y-San Antonio Spurs 48 34 .585 9
3 x-Seattle SuperSonics 52 30 .634 5
4 x-Denver Nuggets 46 36 .561 11
5 x-Phoenix Suns 46 36 .561 11
6 x-Houston Rockets 46 36 .561 11
7 Golden State Warriors 45 37 .549 12
8 Portland Trail Blazers 42 40 .512 15
9 Kansas City Kings 30 52 .366 27
10 Dallas Mavericks 28 54 .341 29
11 Utah Jazz 25 57 .305 32
12 San Diego Clippers 17 65 .207 40

1st seed in the West, 3rd best league record

Regular season
# Eastern Conference
Team W L PCT GB
1 z-Boston Celtics 63 19 .768
2 y-Milwaukee Bucks 55 27 .671 8
3 x-Philadelphia 76ers 58 24 .707 5
4 x-New Jersey Nets 44 38 .537 19
5 x-Washington Bullets 43 39 .524 20
6 x-Atlanta Hawks 42 40 .512 21
7 Detroit Pistons 39 43 .476 24
8 Indiana Pacers 35 47 .427 28
9 Chicago Bulls 34 48 .415 29
10 New York Knicks 33 49 .402 30
11 Cleveland Cavaliers 15 67 .183 48

3rd seed in the East, 2nd best league record

Earned first-round bye First Round Defeated the (6) Atlanta Hawks, 2–0
Defeated the (5) Phoenix Suns, 4–0 Conference Semifinals Defeated the (2) Milwaukee Bucks, 4–2
Defeated the (2) San Antonio Spurs, 4–0 Conference Finals Defeated the (1) Boston Celtics, 4–3

Regular season series

Both teams split the two meetings, each won by the home team:

Series summary

Game Date Home Team Result Road Team
Game 1 Thursday, May 27 Philadelphia 76ers 117–124 (0–1) Los Angeles Lakers
Game 2 Sunday, May 30 Philadelphia 76ers 110–94 (1–1) Los Angeles Lakers
Game 3 Tuesday, June 1 Los Angeles Lakers 129–108 (2–1) Philadelphia 76ers
Game 4 Thursday, June 3 Los Angeles Lakers 111–101 (3–1) Philadelphia 76ers
Game 5 Sunday, June 6 Philadelphia 76ers 135–102 (2–3) Los Angeles Lakers
Game 6 Tuesday, June 8 Los Angeles Lakers 114–104 (4–2) Philadelphia 76ers

Games

Game 1

May 27
Los Angeles Lakers 124, Philadelphia 76ers 117
Scoring by quarter: 30–32, 20–29, 41–28, 33–28
Pts: Nixon, Wilkes 24 each
Rebs: Magic Johnson 14
Asts: Norm Nixon 10
Pts: Julius Erving 27
Rebs: Caldwell Jones 11
Asts: Cheeks, Toney 9 each
Los Angeles leads the series, 1–0
The Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Attendance: 18,364
Referees:
  • No. 11 Jake O'Donnell
  • No. 25 Hugh Evans

Fresh from holding off the Celtics in the conference finals, the Sixers worked their offense to precision and held a 15-point lead midway through the third quarter. But, then, the Lakers began to turn it up on defense using a "zone trap" defense. The Lakers went on a 40-9 run over the game's next 11 minutes on the way to a 124-117 Game 1 win, thereby stealing the home-court advantage.

After the game, Sixers coach Billy Cunningham commented that the Sixers weren't affected that much by the trapping Laker defense, just cold shooting and sloppy play. However, he also questioned whether or not it was a "zone defense", which was illegal at the time.

Game 2

May 30
Los Angeles Lakers 94, Philadelphia 76ers 110
Scoring by quarter: 26–34, 21–33, 29–31, 18–22
Pts: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 23
Rebs: Magic Johnson 11
Asts: Norm Nixon 10
Pts: Julius Erving 24
Rebs: Julius Erving 14
Asts: Andrew Toney 11
Series tied, 1–1
The Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Attendance: 18,364
Referees:
  • No. 10 Darell Garretson
  • No. 9 John Vanak

In this game, Laker coach Pat Riley took a different defensive approach, assigning Magic Johnson to cover Julius Erving straight-up on defense. While Magic couldn't match the Doctor's athleticism, the move did keep Erving from the offensive boards.

In Game 2 that wasn't quite enough, as Erving brought the Sixers back with 24 points and 16 rebounds, mostly defensive. Billy Cunningham used all his centers, Caldwell Jones, Darryl Dawkins and Earl Cureton at different points to guard Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. The Sixers got 38 offensive rebounds for 50 second-chance points, while the Lakers only had six offensive boards.

The Sixers used that advantage to take a 110-94 win that evened the series. In a balanced scoring attack, Maurice Cheeks had 19 points and eight assists, Jones added 12 points and 11 rebounds, and Bobby Jones and Clint Richardson each scored 10. This was the Lakers first loss in the 1982 post season.

Game 3

June 1
Philadelphia 76ers 108, Los Angeles Lakers 129
Scoring by quarter: 20–32, 28–28, 22–31, 38–38
Pts: Andrew Toney 36
Rebs: Darryl Dawkins 13
Asts: Maurice Cheeks 9
Pts: Norm Nixon 29
Rebs: Magic Johnson 9
Asts: Magic Johnson 8
Los Angeles leads the series, 2–1
The Forum, Inglewood, California
Attendance: 17,505
Referees:
  • No. 4 Ed Rush
  • No. 16 Wally Rooney

Back at home at The Forum, the Lakers completely dominated Game 3. Norm Nixon scored 29 points as the Lakers marched to a 129-108 victory. Andrew Toney scored 36 and Julius Erving 21, but no one else came through.

Game 4

June 3
Philadelphia 76ers 101, Los Angeles Lakers 111
Scoring by quarter: 18–29, 24–28, 30–30, 29–24
Pts: Andrew Toney 28
Rebs: B. Jones 9
Asts: Andrew Toney 11
Pts: Johnson, Wilkes 24 each
Rebs: Abdul-Jabbar, Rambis 11 each
Asts: Norm Nixon 14
Los Angeles leads the series, 3–1
The Forum, Inglewood, California
Attendance: 17,505
Referees:
  • No. 14 Jack Madden
  • No. 22 Paul Mihalak

The Lakers controlled the tempo in Game 4 by going to their half-court game, passing down low to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. On the defensive end, they kept up the pressure with their zone trap. The Lakers went up, three games to one, with a 111-101 win. Jamaal Wilkes and Magic Johnson had 24 points each, while Abdul-Jabbar added 22 and Bob McAdoo 19 off the bench. Hard-charging bruiser Kurt Rambis pulled down 11 rebounds.

Game 5

June 6
Los Angeles Lakers 102, Philadelphia 76ers 135
Scoring by quarter: 20–30, 34–34, 27–37, 21–34
Pts: Bob McAdoo 23
Rebs: Magic Johnson 10
Asts: Norm Nixon 13
Pts: Andrew Toney 31
Rebs: Julius Erving 12
Asts: Toney, Cheeks 8 each
Los Angeles leads the series, 3–2
The Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Attendance: 18,364
Referees:
  • No. 11 Jake O'Donnell
  • No. 4 Ed Rush

Back in Philadelphia, the Sixers took out their frustrations and destroyed the Lakers, 135-102. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was held to just six points, a career playoff low, thanks to the spirited defense of Darryl Dawkins. In the midst of the offensive explosion, Dawkins also contributed 20 points and nine rebounds to the effort.

Game 6

June 8
Philadelphia 76ers 104, Los Angeles Lakers 114
Scoring by quarter: 26–30, 31–36, 22–20, 25–28
Pts: Julius Erving 30
Rebs: C. Jones 9
Asts: Maurice Cheeks 9
Pts: Jamaal Wilkes 27
Rebs: Magic Johnson 13
Asts: Magic Johnson 13
Los Angeles wins the series, 4–2
The Forum, Inglewood, California
Attendance: 17,505
Referees:
  • No. 10 Darell Garretson
  • No. 14 Jack Madden

The Sixers' strong showing in Game 5 gave them hope for Game 6 in the Forum, but the Lakers got the early lead and were up, 66-57, at the half.

In the third period, the Sixers' defense turned it up a notch. They held Los Angeles to 20 points for the quarter and several times cut the lead to one point. Super-sub Bob McAdoo, known more for his offense, made a key defensive play late in the third when he blocked a Julius Erving layup on a breakaway that would have given the Sixers the lead.

The Lakers came back and surged early in the fourth period to boost their lead to 11. Andrew Toney, who led all scorers with 30 points, and Erving, who had 29, responded by trimming the lead to 103-100 with about four minutes left, but then Kareem Abdul-Jabbar scored and was fouled and made the free throw to put Los Angeles up by six. Moments later, Wilkes got a breakaway layup to close it out, 114-104.

Jamaal Wilkes led the Lakers with 27 points, and Magic Johnson, with 13 points, 13 rebounds and 13 assists, was named the series MVP. McAdoo, who had 16 points, nine rebounds and three blocks, was pretty much reborn as a player in this series after being cast off by several teams as a selfish, non-team player.

Aside from the Doctor's and Toney's efforts, no one else stepped up for the Sixers. Darryl Dawkins fouled out and only had 10 points and one rebound in 20 minutes played. Dawkins would soon be shipped to the New Jersey Nets, and the 76ers acquired the final piece of their championship puzzle: Moses Malone, an MVP center from the Houston Rockets.

Team rosters

Player statistics

Legend
  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
Los Angeles Lakers
Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Philadelphia 76ers
Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG

Television coverage

Unlike previous years, where weeknight games were shown on tape delay, all games in the Finals were televised live by CBS. As a compromise to CBS to allow the live telecasts, the NBA returned the start of its season to late October after starting it earlier in October the previous two seasons, meaning the finals would start after the conclusion of the mid-May sweeps period. The later date also eliminated the back-to-back games on Mother's Day weekend, which was used in 1980 and 1981 to avert another tape delay broadcast. This was also the first of nine straight NBA finals (1982-1990) that Dick Stockton would call for CBS Sports. Stockton also announced the starting lineups of the 1982 NBA Finals in lieu of P.A. announcers Dave Zinkoff and Larry McKay (who would be replaced the next season by Lawrence Tanter).

Aftermath

Both teams would meet in the Finals again in 1983. The Sixers, bolstered by the addition of league MVP Moses Malone, won 65 games, and steamrolled through the playoffs, in which they lost only once (completing Malone's famous "Fo, Fo, Fo" prediction, stating that the Sixers needed to win 4 games in each of the three series) en route to their third NBA title overall (they won in 1955 as the Syracuse Nationals, and in 1967). The Lakers finished the regular season with 58 wins, but were overmatched by the hungrier Sixers in the Finals. Then-rookie and future Hall of Famer James Worthy did not play in the series because of a late-season leg injury.

See also

External links

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