It was the height of “Blazermania” and Bill Walton’s short domination of the NBA, which would end with his title as regular season MVP in 1978. On June 5, 1977, Portland won the NBA title thanks in particular to a monstrous performance from its pivot, against Philadelphia.
His line of statistics is quite simply one of the most impressive in the history of the Finals: 20 points, 23 rebounds, 8 blocks and 7 assists. To find as good, it will be necessary to wait for 2001 with Shaquille O’Neal (Game 2 against the Sixers) and 28 points, 20 rebounds, 9 assists, 8 blocks, then Tim Duncan in 2003 (Game 6 against the Nets), 21 points, 20 rebounds, 10 assists and 8 blocks!
But if Bill Walton is huge, he is not alone and that is where the strength of the Blazers lay. The pivot, an excellent passer, was at the center of a very balanced team.
“Basketball is a sport that is played with five players. The Blazers practice it as if they invented it. We were a team with great one-on-one abilities, but Portland played as a group, with no heads sticking out.”
In this Game 6, Lionel Hollins notably scored 20 points, Bob Gross 24 and Maurice Lucas 15. Opposite, Julius Erving was just as strong as the former UCLA star with 40 points, but “Dr. J” remained isolated.
“Basketball is a sport that is played with five”, will explain the star of Philadelphia. “The Blazers play it like they invented it. We were a team with great one-on-one abilities, but Portland played as a group, with no heads sticking out. In the end, the collective principle prevails. »
So once the title was validated (109-107) after George McGinnis’ last failed attempt, it was of course Bill Walton who was elected Finals MVP with 18.5 points, 19 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 3.7 blocks. mean.
But the pivot was not the best scorer of his team in these Finals (Maurice Lucas compiled 19.7 points) and no less than four players from Portland shot at least 16 points per game (Maurice Lucas and Bill Walton of course, but also Bob Gross and Lionel Hollins).
