Bullets To Love And Remember

It was another season full of hope for the Washington Bullets. There had been a few seasons of unfulfilled expectations. Two seasons were most remembered for quick exits after a long journey. Age had crept into its own jersey and was as much a part of the team as any other.



The city had high hopes regardless of the past. There was good reason. The finest player ever to suit up in the hometown uniform, Wes Unseld, was still captain of the roster. His knees were worn, but his shoulders were still wide and strong. He was the epitome of determination. He did have help, thank goodness.

One was Elvin Hayes, who is amongst the finest to ever play the power forward position. Both of these players names are written all over the Bullets, and leagues, history books. There were also other legends participating.

One was Phil Chenier, who still is part of the organization as a broadcaster. Another is Mitch Kupchak, the General Manager of one of the most celebrated franchises in the leagues history. There was Kevin Grevey, a member of that 1972 U.S. Olympic team that won silver after an incorrect call by the officials had cost the U.S.A. gold late in the final game.



It had been a difficult season. They had a new coach named Dick Motta. Hayes had threatened to retire rather than play in his new system. Injuries had plagued the team for most of the season. They rallied midway through the season, getting many career high performances from the roster.

One important piece was the acquisition of Bobby Dandridge, an All Star player who had helped his Milwaukee Bucks team sweep Washington in the 1971 Finals. They lost an important piece of their puzzle and had to replace him Charlie Johnson. He had helped embarrass Washington just three years earlier in yet another Finals sweeping with the Golden State Warriors. In fact, his signing is viewed as a major catalyst in the teams resurgence.

The team had only one All-Star, who ended up playing the fewest minutes in that years All-Star game for his conference. They only averaged .5 points better than their opponents that season, and finished eight games out of first place. Still, they ended up the 3rd seed in their conferences playoff bracket.

After a fairly easy first round, they eked out victories in the next two rounds by defeating the #2 and #1 seeds in six games each. During this time, a journalist from the #2 seeds town, San Antonio, tried to urge his fellow fans on by saying, " The opera isn't over until the fat lady sings." He had invented this phrase a year earlier in his sports column. 

Motta had heard this phrase, but changed it to, "It Ain't Over Until The Fat Lady Sings" to encourage his underdog team. It would set the stage for one of the more exciting Finals in recent history.



Their opponents, the Seattle SuperSonics, had gotten off to bad start that season as well. They had lost 17 of their first 22 games They then fired their coach and replaced him with Lenny Wilkens, a Hall of Fame player who would go on and win the most games via a coaching career in the leagues history. He would be later also inducted into the Hall of Fame as a coach.

The team was balanced with six players having averaged over double figures per game for the season. They had the best back court trio in the league, which featured "Downtown" Freddie Brown. His number was later retired by the franchise, and he was a multiple All-Star.

That year, however, Seattle had no one represent the franchise in the All-Star game. The bench was deep and was led by a great player, Paul Silas, whose playing career was winding down after many successes in his great career. He would go on to coach several teams. They also had a future Hall of Famer starting in the post named Jack Sikma. They were deep, young, and talented. They knocked off the leagues defending champion on their way to the finals. They also would go back to the finals in the following season as well.

You're currently logged into Facebook

Do you want to share your Bleacher Report activity on Facebook?