1978–79 Seattle SuperSonics season

The 1978–79 Seattle SuperSonics season was the team's 12th since the franchise began, and their most successful, winning their first NBA title. This was Seattle's first professional sports championship since the Seattle Metropolitans victory in the Stanley Cup in 1917.

Offseason

NBA Draft

Round	Pick	Player	Nationality	School/Club Team
2	39	James Lee	United States	Kentucky
2	42	Kevin McDonald	United States	Pennsylvania
3	61	Dave Baxter	United States	Michigan
4	83	Billy Lewis	United States	Illinois State University
5	105	Ralph Drollinger	United States	UCLA

Roster

Seattle SuperSonics 1978–79 roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Nat. Name Ht. Wt. DOB From 6.0 !C 21 USA ! Awtrey, Dennis 82 !6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1948–02–22 Santa Clara 1.5 !G 32 USA ! Brown, Fred 75 !6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 182 lb (83 kg) 1948–08–07 Iowa 1.5 !G 10 USA ! Hassett, Joe 77 !6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1955–09–11 Providence 1.5 !G 24 USA ! Johnson, Dennis 76 !6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1954–09–18 Pepperdine 4.0 !F 27 USA ! Johnson, John 79 !6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1947–10–18 Iowa 5.5 !F/C 23 USA ! LaGarde, Tom 82 !6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1955–02–10 North Carolina 4.0 !F 22 USA ! Robinson, Jackie 78 !6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1955–05–20 UNLV 4.0 !F 8 USA ! Shelton, Lonnie 80 !6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1955–10–19 Oregon State 5.5 !F/C 43 USA ! Sikma, Jack 83 !6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1955–11–14 Illinois Wesleyan 5.5 !F/C 35 USA ! Silas, Paul 79 !6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1943–07–12 Creighton 2.5 !G/F 11 USA ! Snyder, Dick 77 !6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 207 lb (94 kg) 1944–02–01 Davidson 4.0 !F 42 USA ! Walker, Wally 79 !6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1954–07–18 Dayton 1.5 !G 1 USA ! Williams, Gus 74 !6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1953–10–10 South Carolina	Head coach Lenny Wilkens (Providence) Legend (C) Team captain (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured

Depth chart

Regular season

Season standings

Player stats

Note: GP= Games played; MPG= Minutes per Game; STL = Steals; REB = Rebounds; ASST = Assists; BLK = Blocks; PPG = Points per Game

Playoffs

West First Round

The SuperSonics had a first round bye.

West Conference Semifinals

(1) Seattle SuperSonics vs. (5) Los Angeles Lakers: Sonics win series 4-1

• Game 1 @ Seattle: Seattle 112, Los Angeles 101
• Game 2 @ Seattle: Seattle 108, Los Angeles 103 (OT)
• Game 3 @ Los Angeles: Los Angeles 118, Seattle 112 (OT)
• Game 4 @ Los Angeles: Seattle 117, Los Angeles 115
• Game 5 @ Seattle: Seattle 106, Los Angeles 100

West Conference Finals

(1) Seattle SuperSonics vs. (3) Phoenix Suns: Sonics win series 4-3

• Game 1 @ Seattle: Seattle 108, Phoenix 93
• Game 2 @ Seattle: Seattle 103, Phoenix 97
• Game 3 @ Phoenix: Phoenix 113, Seattle 103
• Game 4 @ Phoenix: Phoenix 100, Seattle 91
• Game 5 @ Seattle: Phoenix 99, Seattle 93
• Game 6 @ Phoenix: Seattle 106, Phoenix 105
• Game 7 @ Seattle: Seattle 114, Phoenix 110

NBA finals

Dennis Johnson of the SuperSonics was the Most Valuable Player of the Finals while Gus Williams of the SuperSonics was the top scorer, averaging 28.6 points per game.

SuperSonics win series 4-1

Award winners

• Dennis Johnson, NBA All-Defensive First Team
• Dennis Johnson, NBA Finals Most Valuable Player

References

• SuperSonics on Database Basketball
• SuperSonics on Basketball Reference

External links

• Seattle PI: Photos | 1979 National Champion Seattle SuperSonics