Of all the NBA finals that I have witnessed, the 1978 championship series holds a special place in my heart. The Washington Bullets defeated the Seattle Supersonics in an exciting series that went to the limit. It was a memorable series as the deciding game seven goes down in history as the only NBA finals game that was shown live in Philippine theaters. The Sonics got their revenge the following year as they won the NBA title over the Bullets in five games. The Bullets, mentored by the legendary Dick Motta and starring future Hall-of-Famers Wes Unseld and Elvin Hayes plus other notable stars such as Bobby Dandridge, Mitch Kupchak and Charles Jones, clinched the ’78 diadem with a thrilling 105-99 road win that shocked the whole of the Emerald City. In 1979, the Bullets visited Manila and played a game before 35,000 fans at the Araneta Coliseum against a PBA All-Star team reinforced by imports Cyrus Mann, Andy Fields and Larry Pounds. Hayes, who up to this day, says visiting the city of Seattle has always bring him good memories of that unforgettable game seven of the 1978 NBA finals, according to NBA.com.
“I remember flying out to Seattle thinking about all the things that had gone through all the years that I had played in the NBA. All of that was coming down to one game, a championship game, and after that game, I remember feeling a joy over the next 48 hours, just a spring of joy, a feeling of great accomplishment. Out of my 16 years of playing, I had waited for that moment, and that moment came, and it was just tremendous.”
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