1975–76 NBA season

The 1975–76 NBA season was the 30th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Boston Celtics winning the NBA Championship, beating the Phoenix Suns 4 games to 2 in the NBA Finals.

Notable occurrences

*Larry O'Brien begins his tenure as the league's third commissioner.
*The 1976 NBA All-Star Game was played at The Spectrum in Philadelphia, with the Eastern Conference beating the Western Conference 123–109. Dave Bing of the Washington Bullets wins the game's MVP award.
*The Kansas City-Omaha Kings are renamed the Kansas City Kings as they settle into a permanent home in Kansas City, Missouri.
*The New Orleans Jazz moved into the cavernous Louisiana Superdome after splitting their inaugural season between two inadequate facilities, the Loyola University Fieldhouse and New Orleans Municipal Auditorium.
*The Houston Rockets play their inaugural season in The Summit.
*It was the final season for Don Nelson, Pat Riley and Jerry Sloan as players. Each would go on to coach more than 2,000 games in the NBA.
*This was the final season before the NBA-ABA merger. In the 1976 offseason, four ABA teams joined the NBA: the Denver Nuggets, Indiana Pacers, San Antonio Spurs, and the reigning ABA champion New York Nets, who relocated to New Jersey.
*Dick Bavetta began his Hall of Fame officiating career, replacing the retired Mendy Rudolph, who suffered a blood clot in his lung during a 1975 playoff game and became an analyst for CBS Sports. Bavetta went on to set the record for most games officiated with 2,635 by the time he retired in 2014.
*Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was named the league's Most Valuable Player despite his team missing the playoffs. He remains the only league MVP to miss the playoffs.
*The NBA Finals were contested by the Boston Celtics and Phoenix Suns. Phoenix was making their first finals appearance; Boston was making their fourteenth.
*Game 4 of the NBA Finals was first game ever played in the month of June.
*Game 5 of the NBA Finals between the Celtics and the Suns went into triple-overtime before the Celtics prevailed 128–126. This was the first triple-overtime game in NBA finals history; the only triple-overtime finals game since occurred in 1993, in which the Phoenix Suns were again participating.

Final standings

By division

By conference

Notes
*z, y – division champions
*x – clinched playoff spot

Playoffs

Statistics leaders

NBA awards

*Most Valuable Player: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Los Angeles Lakers
* Rookie of the Year: Alvan Adams, Phoenix Suns
*Coach of the Year: Bill Fitch, Cleveland Cavaliers

*All-NBA First Team:
**F – Rick Barry, Golden State Warriors
**F – George McGinnis, Philadelphia 76ers
**C – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Los Angeles Lakers
**G – Nate Archibald, Kansas City Kings
**G – Pete Maravich, New Orleans Jazz

*All-NBA Second Team:
**F – Elvin Hayes, Washington Bullets
**F – John Havlicek, Boston Celtics
**C – Dave Cowens, Boston Celtics
**G – Randy Smith, Buffalo Braves
**G – Phil Smith, Golden State Warriors

*NBA All-Rookie Team:
**Joe Meriweather, Houston Rockets
**Alvan Adams, Phoenix Suns
**Lionel Hollins, Portland Trail Blazers
**John Shumate, Phoenix Suns/Buffalo Braves
** Gus Williams, Golden State Warriors

*NBA All-Defensive First Team:
**Paul Silas, Boston Celtics
**John Havlicek, Boston Celtics
**Dave Cowens, Boston Celtics
**Norm Van Lier, Chicago Bulls
**Slick Watts, Seattle SuperSonics

*NBA All-Defensive Second Team:
**Jim Brewer, Cleveland Cavaliers
**Jamaal Wilkes, Golden State Warriors
**Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Los Angeles Lakers
**Jim Cleamons, Cleveland Cavaliers
** Phil Smith, Golden State Warriors

See also

* 1976 NBA Finals
* 1976 NBA playoffs
* 1975–76 ABA season

References

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