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1969–70 NBA season

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1969–70 NBA season
LeagueNational Basketball Association
SportBasketball
DurationOctober 14, 1969 – March 22, 1970
March 25–April 20, 1970 (Playoffs)
April 24–May 8, 1970 (Finals)
Number of games82
Number of teams14
TV partner(s)ABC
Draft
Top draft pickLew Alcindor[a]
Picked byMilwaukee Bucks
Regular season
Season MVPWillis Reed (New York)
Top scorerJerry West (L.A. Lakers)
Playoffs
Eastern championsNew York Knicks
  Eastern runners-upMilwaukee Bucks
Western championsLos Angeles Lakers
  Western runners-upAtlanta Hawks
Finals
ChampionsNew York Knicks
  Runners-upLos Angeles Lakers
Finals MVPWillis Reed (New York)
NBA seasons

The 1969–70 NBA Season was the 24th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the New York Knicks winning the NBA Championship, beating the Los Angeles Lakers 4 games to 3 in the NBA Finals.

Regular season

The 1969–70 season saw the NBA into a new decade as well as a new era. The retirement of Bill Russell from the Boston Celtics at the end of the 1968–69 season effectively signaled the end of the Celtics dynasty that had dominated the NBA for the past decade.

The New York Knicks were the top club in the league. They had a solid team of players led by star center Willis Reed and rising star guard Walt Frazier. Dave DeBusschere, who had been acquired from the Detroit Pistons the previous year, combined with Frazier and Reed to anchor the league's best defense. Coach Red Holzman led the club to wins in 60 of its 82 regular season games to pace the league.[citation needed]

In just their second season in the league, the Milwaukee Bucks totaled 56 wins behind rookie superstar Lew Alcindor. The 7'2", 230-pound center had caused controversy by boycotting the 1968 Summer Olympics and urging Elvin Hayes, Wes Unseld, and Bob Lanier to do the same. The Bucks, however, were happy to sign him after a bidding war with the ABA. Alcindor averaged 29 points per game on 52% shooting. He was also third in rebounds, seventh in shooting accuracy, second in minutes played, and blocked more shots than any center since Russell or Chamberlain, making him a strong Most Valuable Player candidate in just his first year. Coach Larry Costello's team also had a strong backcourt of Jon McGlocklin and Flynn Robinson, and two ex-Cincinnati Royals, but Alcindor's arrival on the team nearly doubled their win total from the previous season, earning him rookie of the year honors.[citation needed]

The Baltimore Bullets also reached the 50-win plateau. Coach Gene Shue led a squad looking to improve after their early playoff exit the previous year. Guards Earl Monroe and Kevin Loughery were the team's main scoring threats, while center Wes Unseld and forward Gus Johnson excelled at rebounding, giving the Bullets more field goals than any other NBA team that year.

The Atlanta Hawks won the NBA's West Division title with 48 wins. Under coach Rick Guerin, they fielded a solid starting five, led again by scorer Lou Hudson. An early-season trade with Detroit netted star center Walt Bellamy. The Hawks again eyed a shot at the NBA Finals with some of the same faces from their St. Louis days.

Right behind the Hawks at 46 wins were the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers starting five had to account early for an injury to Wilt Chamberlain, who played just twelve regular-season games. Happy Hairston joined Elgin Baylor to average 20 points per game, even as Baylor was hampered by injury for much of the year. Guard Jerry West led the NBA in scoring, averaging 31.2 points per game on 50% shooting from the field and 82% from the free throw line.[citation needed]

Playoffs

The top four teams from each division made the playoffs. Unusually, The NBA had the division winners face the third-best teams, while the second-seeds faced the fourth seeded teams in Round One. New York met third-place Baltimore in a rematch of the previous year's playoff series. The Knicks won the series in 7 games, including an overtime win in Game 1. The Bullets scoring was neutralized by the defensive-minded Knicks team. Milwaukee eliminated the 76ers in 5 games on the strength of Alcindor at center.

Atlanta's strong five, with player/coach Guerin coming off the bench effectively at age 37, beat the Chicago Bulls, led by ex-76er Chet Walker four games to one in the Western division semifinals. The Lakers survived a seven-game series with the second-year Phoenix Suns. The Suns had a strong frontline led by Paul Silas and former ABA star Connie Hawkins.

With the top seeds in both divisions advancing, New York then met Milwaukee while Atlanta met Los Angeles. The Lakers swept the Hawks in four games. Jerry West and Wilt Chamberlain were again on a mission, but the Lakers bench may have been the deciding factor in this series. In the East, New York eliminated the Bucks in five games.[citation needed]

New York had the edge in Game 5 until Reed collapsed with a torn leg muscle, allowing Chamberlain a strong advantage. Knicks coach Red Holzman devised a strategy to confuse the Lakers with a centerless lineup, rotating different defenders on Chamberlain. The Knicks went on to win 107–100. With Reed out, Chamberlain scored 45 points in Game 6 in Los Angeles to knot the series again at 3. Game 7 would be in New York, but without Reed, the Knicks appeared to have little chance of winning.

With ABC's Chris Schenkel and Jack Twyman leading speculation about what the Knicks could do to guard Chamberlain, Reed emerged from the locker room and joined his team on the floor, shocking thousands and surprising the Lakers. Energized by their big man's effort, the Knicks roared to an early lead and held on long after Reed limped to the bench. The Knicks achieved sports immortality with the 113–99 victory, their first NBA title.[citation needed]

Division standings

[2]

Eastern Division

Eastern Division
 W L PCT GB
x-New York Knicks 60 22 .732 –
x-Milwaukee Bucks 56 26 .683 4
x-Baltimore Bullets 50 32 .610 10
x-Philadelphia 76ers 42 40 .512 18
Cincinnati Royals 36 46 .439 24
Boston Celtics 34 48 .415 26
Detroit Pistons 31 51 .378 29

Western Division

Western Division
 W L PCT GB
x-Atlanta Hawks 48 34 .585 –
x-Los Angeles Lakers 46 36 .561 2
x-Chicago Bulls 39 43 .476 9
x-Phoenix Suns 39 43 .476 9
Seattle SuperSonics 36 46 .439 12
San Francisco Warriors 30 52 .366 18
San Diego Rockets 27 55 .329 21

x – clinched playoff spot

Statistics leaders

Category Player Team Stat
Points per game Jerry West Los Angeles Lakers 31.2
Rebounds per game Elvin Hayes San Diego Rockets 16.9
Assists per game Lenny Wilkens Seattle SuperSonics 9.1
FG% Johnny Green Cincinnati Royals .559
FT% Flynn Robinson Milwaukee Bucks .898

NBA awards

Source: History section at NBA.com

Notes

  1. ^ Changed his name to Kareem Abdul Jabbar before the 1971–72 season.[1]

References

  1. ^ "Basketball Star Lew Alcindor Changes Name to Kareem Jabbar". The Morning Record. September 17, 1971. p. 14. Retrieved July 16, 2016.
  2. ^ "Division Standings". 1969-70 NBA Season Summary. Basketball Reference. Retrieved 24 August 2018.

See also

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