1979 Spurs opponent 76ers

[Fabbs]

The heartbreaking WCFs loss to Washington Bullets in Gm 7 107-105.

Round 2 they beat Philly in 7 games.
Who was on that Philly team, and why did that Philly team only win 47 games that year? (Was in a 6 year stretch that Philly averaged about 60 wins per year)
Was Dr J. injured during the regular season?

Mods if this should go on the other side....

[Taco]

was this the game where Wes Unseld (spelling) reached behind him and grabbed Artis Gilmore causing Gilmore to fall into Unsled, the ref called a foul Washington get's the ball and win the game and series?

[FromWayDowntown]

Here's the Sixers' roster from that season:


Name G GS MP FG FGA 3P 3PA FT FTA ORB DRB TRB AST STL BLK TO PF PTS
+--------------------+---+--+----+----+----+---+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+---+---+---+---+----+
Julius Erving 78 2802 715 1455 373 501 198 366 564 357 133 100 315 207 1803
Darryl Dawkins 78 2035 430 831 158 235 123 508 631 128 32 143 197 295 1018
Henry Bibby 82 2538 368 869 266 335 72 172 244 371 72 7 197 199 1002
Bobby Jones 80 2304 378 704 209 277 199 332 531 201 107 96 165 245 965
Doug Collins 47 1595 358 717 201 247 36 87 123 191 52 20 131 139 917
Caldwell Jones 78 2171 302 637 121 162 177 570 747 151 39 157 156 303 725
Steve Mix 74 1269 265 493 161 201 109 184 293 121 57 16 100 112 691
Maurice Cheeks 82 2409 292 572 101 140 63 191 254 431 174 12 193 198 685
Joe Bryant 70 1064 205 478 123 170 96 163 259 103 49 9 114 171 533
Eric Money 23 545 119 217 34 54 15 22 37 82 13 2 69 70 272
Ralph Simpson 37 452 87 196 28 40 16 19 35 58 25 1 47 27 202
Al Skinner 22 309 36 89 27 32 15 29 44 40 18 1 34 61 99
Harvey Catchings 25 289 28 68 13 17 30 68 98 18 8 35 37 42 69
Marlon Redmond 4 23 1 12 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 3 2
+--------------------+---+--+----+----+----+---+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+---+---+---+---+----+

I think, if you go back and look at standings from that era, you'll find that there weren't a lot of teams rolling up win totals in the high 50's or low 60's. The teams that reached those win totals were truly exceptional. In part, I think that was because there were fewer teams and the talent was abit more evenly distributed -- in 1977 for example, the Lakers had the best record in basketball, but won only 53 games; in the same 1979 season that you asked about, the Bullets had the best record in basketball, but won only 54 games.

That trend is particularly in the late 70's, I think, when you had a series of champions who didn't really come close to winning another title during that era:

1975: Golden State beat Washington and lost the next year in the WCF; Washington lost in the ECSF.

1976: Boston beat Phoenix and lost the next year in the ECSF; Phoenix didn't qualify for the 1977 playoffs

1977: Portland beat Philadelphia and lost the next year in the WCSF; Philly lost in the ECF

1978: Washington beat Seattle and the teams each made the 1979 Finals, with the result reversing. In 1980, Seattle lost in the WCF, but Washington lost in the First Round.

I suppose that's an indication of parity, and parity tends to make records look mediocre, particularly in this day and age when every season seems to bring a 60-win team or two.

[SAtown]

The heartbreaking WCFs loss to Washington Bullets in Gm 7 107-105.



I believe that was the Eastern Conference Finals...

[ShoogarBear]

The heartbreaking WCFs loss to Washington Bullets in Gm 7 107-105.

Round 2 they beat Philly in 7 games.
Who was on that Philly team, and why did that Philly team only win 47 games that year? (Was in a 6 year stretch that Philly averaged about 60 wins per year)
Was Dr J. injured during the regular season?

Mods if this should go on the other side....It was moreso the fact that:
1) it was the first year after the George McGinnis for Bobby Jones trade
2) Doug Collins missed 35 games.

[trevcourt]

That 76ers team was on its way up - they really started dominating the next season on through to their 1983 championship.

The Spurs were only 48-34 in 1979 but were first in the East Central. Favored over the 76ers, but an underdog that *almost* took down the Bullets. Damn.

[FromWayDowntown]

2) Doug Collins missed 35 games.

He also missed the 1979 NBA Playoffs and wasn't ever really the same after that injury.

[Jimcs50]

The heartbreaking WCFs loss to Washington Bullets in Gm 7 107-105.

Round 2 they beat Philly in 7 games.
Who was on that Philly team, and why did that Philly team only win 47 games that year? (Was in a 6 year stretch that Philly averaged about 60 wins per year)
Was Dr J. injured during the regular season?

Mods if this should go on the other side....

We had Philly down 3-1 and let Philly tie the series before we won in game 7.

I still remember the Express News sports page 1 with a picture of a certain Spurs player drinking out of a Champaigne bottle after we finally beat Philly in Game 7.

Do any of you know what Spur was drinking the champagne?

[degenerate_gambler]

Do any of you know what Spur was drinking the champagne?


Mike Green

[ShoogarBear]

:lol Lame to drink champagne after winning the conference semifinals.

But it was the first playoff series victory in Spurs history, NBA or ABA.

[dbestpro]

The heartbreaking WCFs loss to Washington Bullets in Gm 7 107-105.

Round 2 they beat Philly in 7 games.
Who was on that Philly team, and why did that Philly team only win 47 games that year? (Was in a 6 year stretch that Philly averaged about 60 wins per year)
Was Dr J. injured during the regular season?

Mods if this should go on the other side....

I was at that game 7. It was my first Spurs game and I was a young soldier at Fort Sam.

[Willinsa]

I remember at the end of game 7 everyone stormed the court.

[Capt Bringdown]

was this the game where Wes Unseld (spelling) reached behind him and grabbed Artis Gilmore causing Gilmore to fall into Unsled, the ref called a foul Washington get's the ball and win the game and series?

Artis wasn't around until much later. Imagine if we would've had Artis instead of The Whopper, wow!

This game featured the infamous moving pick called on Whopper, correct? My youthful introduction to Spurs heartache-I cried like a baby.
Didn't the Spurs blow a 3-1 lead in the Washington series as well?

Doug Moe protested the deciding game I believe, and made some comments to the media about the refs that resulted in a fine. I seem to recall that Spurs fans took up a collection and paid the fine for him! That's the way it was back then.

Being so naiive, I thought that because Moe protested the game, there was a good chance that the league would actually overturn the call and we'd get the win. I simply couldn't believe or accept that we'd go out like that...
You've got to take the bitter with the sweet, and we've had a taste of the bitter along with the sweet, I reckon!
-the original FOUL (moving pick)
-THE PASS (thanks, Rod)
-.04
-THE FOUL part II

[mikejones99]

The pass game vs Portland. Spurs were 50 to 1 to win it all that year.

[ShoogarBear]

The offensive was called by Jack Madden against Mark Olberding (although I have seen elsewhere that it was against Billy Paultz, I seem to remember from listening to the game that it was Olberding) with the Spurs still up and about two minutes left in game 7 of the 1979 ECF. What happened is that Olberding (or Paultz) handed the ball off and as he did, he stepped in front of the defender who was chasing the guy who got the ball. It was a lame call for those days in the NBA. Later, somebody pointed out correctly that if that was an offensive foul, then Wes Unseld would have fouled out of every game he ever played in.

None of these games were televised, so I can only go by what I remember from the radio call and newspaper accounts.

Moe made some remarks and got fined a bunch ($10K ?). One of the local radio stations took up a collection in pennies which they planned to mail in to the league office (the money was later given to charity).

[Trainwreck2100]

We had Philly down 3-1 and let Philly tie the series before we won in game 7.

I still remember the Express News sports page 1 with a picture of a certain Spurs player drinking out of a Champaigne bottle after we finally beat Philly in Game 7.

Do any of you know what Spur was drinking the champagne?


Are you sure it wasn't the San Antonio Light, and not the Express news

[Clutch20]

The offensive was called by Jack Madden against Mark Olberding (although I have seen elsewhere that it was against Billy Paultz, I seem to remember from listening to the game that it was Olberding) with the Spurs still up and about two minutes left in game 7 of the 1979 ECF. What happened is that Olberding (or Paultz) handed the ball off and as he did, he stepped in front of the defender who was chasing the guy who got the ball. It was a lame call for those days in the NBA. Later, somebody pointed out correctly that if that was an offensive foul, then Wes Unseld would have fouled out of every game he ever played in.

None of these games were televised, so I can only go by what I remember from the radio call and newspaper accounts.

Moe made some remarks and got fined a bunch ($10K ?). One of the local radio stations took up a collection in pennies which they planned to mail in to the league office (the money was later given to charity).
Thanks Shoog, that's a gap in my Spurs memories that's now filled. I was playing in disco clubs and teaching at the same time in '79 so I don't remember much of what my beloved team did that year.

[Russ]

Alan Bristow hit the biggest shot in Spurs history (until AJ's shot in Madison Square Garden) to win that series. That was the first Spurs playoff series win (ABA or NBA) of all time. :)

[wildbill2u]

I think the call was made closer to the end of the game but it's not important. It clearly turned the game around. I remember that Silas got the ball as usual at the end of the game because he was the inimitable 'Captain Late" and rubbed off his defender with the pick around the top right of the key. Moving pick my ass!

It would have been a easy shot, but the whistle blew. The common thought amongst all fans from old ABA territories was that the NBA refs were under some pressure to make sure the upstarts from the ABA wouldn't make it to the finals so soon.

After the loss, thousands of fans (I think the estimate was 5,000) went to the airport to meet the Spurs plane and welcome them home--trophy or not. We swarmed out onto the field and Moe made a little impromtu speech. The pennies for his fine were collected in short order 'cause we all agreed we got jobbed. That was as close as Gervin or the old ABA bunch ever got to a championship.

[FromWayDowntown]

The offensive was called by Jack Madden against Mark Olberding .

I think it was John Vanak and not Jack Madden. It couldn't have been Jack Madden, because that game was called by Vanak, Jake O'Donnell, and Paul Mihalak. The description of the play is correct, I think.

A few years ago, I went to a university library, poured through old newspapers and made copies of the boxscore of every Spurs playoff game from 1977 through 1996. For that game, my copy captured just a bit of the game story -- though I should go back and get the rest for the sake of building my own momentos. The bit of the Express-News story mentions a question about whether a player was set and seems to refer to Moe being irate about something that Vanak did. My recollection has always been that Vanak was the villian, but I'm willing to concede that my memory is based mostly on the bit of a newspaper story that I still have and some other things I recall reading and hearing.

[FromWayDowntown]

Alan Bristow hit the biggest shot in Spurs history (until AJ's shot in Madison Square Garden) to win that series. That was the first Spurs playoff series win (ABA or NBA) of all time. :)

I don't think it was Bristow, if you mean the Philly series in '79. Bristow played a total of 8 minutes in the last two games of that series, going 0-3 from the floor and 2-2 from the line (with the 2 makes coming in Game 6, which the Spurs lost in Philadelphia). Bristow started the first 5 games of that series and then fell almost completely out of Moe's rotation in favor of Mark Olberding, who started Games 6 & 7 against Philly and all 7 games against Washington.

I think Mike Green actually made the last field goal of the Philly series in '79. According to the E-N account of that game:

"Erving hit two free throws with a minute left, but [Mike] Green struck that long jumper from the left with 43 seconds remaining to up the margin to three. Dampier, the short man on the court, rebounded Bobby Jones' jumper from the lane and Gervin was fouled with 11 seconds left."

San Antonio Express-News, Thursday, May 3, 1979.

[ShoogarBear]

I think it was John Vanak and not Jack Madden. It couldn't have been Jack Madden, because that game was called by Vanak, Jake O'Donnell, and Paul Mihalak. The description of the play is correct, I think.

A few years ago, I went to a university library, poured through old newspapers and made copies of the boxscore of every Spurs playoff game from 1977 through 1996. For that game, my copy captured just a bit of the game story -- though I should go back and get the rest for the sake of building my own momentos. The bit of the Express-News story mentions a question about whether a player was set and seems to refer to Moe being irate about something that Vanak did. My recollection has always been that Vanak was the villian, but I'm willing to concede that my memory is based mostly on the bit of a newspaper story that I still have and some other things I recall reading and hearing.Odd. I'm willing to concede it may not have been Madden, but I have no recollection of Vanak doing that game at all.

Do you remember (or have the proof) if the foul was on Paultz or Olberding?

[FromWayDowntown]

Odd. I'm willing to concede it may not have been Madden, but I have no recollection of Vanak doing that game at all.

Do you remember (or have the proof) if the foul was on Paultz or Olberding?

Like I say, the boxscore says that the officials for Game 7 of the Washington series were O'Donnell, Vanak, and Mihalak -- if my memory serves, O'Donnell and Vanak were the officials on the floor and Mihalak was the alternate (since the NBA only used 2 game officials at that point)

Madden called Game 6 of that series with Joe Gushue.

I don't recall who the foul was on; I thought I had recorded one of the classic games rebroadcasts of that game -- if I did, I can't put my hands on the tape right now, unfortunately.

[SequSpur]

damn, you guys are old.

[ShoogarBear]

damn, you guys are old.I know there's a great comeback here along the lines of "and you are . . ." but it's just not coming to me.

[Russ]

I don't think it was Bristow, if you mean the Philly series in '79. Bristow played a total of 8 minutes in the last two games of that series, going 0-3 from the floor and 2-2 from the line (with the 2 makes coming in Game 6, which the Spurs lost in Philadelphia). Bristow started the first 5 games of that series and then fell almost completely out of Moe's rotation in favor of Mark Olberding, who started Games 6 & 7 against Philly and all 7 games against Washington.

I think Mike Green actually made the last field goal of the Philly series in '79. According to the E-N account of that game:

"Erving hit two free throws with a minute left, but [Mike] Green struck that long jumper from the left with 43 seconds remaining to up the margin to three. Dampier, the short man on the court, rebounded Bobby Jones' jumper from the lane and Gervin was fouled with 11 seconds left."

San Antonio Express-News, Thursday, May 3, 1979.

I'll never believe it. Bristow hit the shot. :)

[rascal]

I think, if you go back and look at standings from that era, you'll find that there weren't a lot of teams rolling up win totals in the high 50's or low 60's. The teams that reached those win totals were truly exceptional. In part, I think that was because there were fewer teams and the talent was abit more evenly distributed -- in 1977 for example, the Lakers had the best record in basketball, but won only 53 games; in the same 1979 season that you asked about, the Bullets had the best record in basketball, but won only 54 games.

That trend is particularly in the late 70's, I think, when you had a series of champions who didn't really come close to winning another title during that era:


I suppose that's an indication of parity, and parity tends to make records look mediocre, particularly in this day and age when every season seems to bring a 60-win team or two.

Expansion has led to more weaker teams added to the league which pads the win totals for the better teams.

[rascal]

damn, you guys are old.
You missed the most exciting spurs teams ever. When they were out to prove they belonged in the nba. San Antonio was known as the loudest arena in the league back then, and the spurs were a high scoring fun to watch, run and gun team. I also liked Doug Moe.

[degenerate_gambler]

Do any of you guys remember the 'power failure' in this game as well?

The Spurs made a run and were up by several points in the third quarter I believe and they clearly had the momentum. Then the lights literally went out in the Capitol Centre and they stopped the game for a few minutes to 'fix' the problem.

I just recall Terry Stembridge being very skeptical about the sudden timing of the problem.

[tsb2000]

Do any of you guys remember the 'power failure' in this game as well?

The Spurs made a run and were up by several points in the third quarter I believe and they clearly had the momentum. Then the lights literally went out in the Capitol Centre and they stopped the game for a few minutes to 'fix' the problem.

I just recall Terry Stembridge being very skeptical about the sudden timing of the problem.

I remember that game. In later days, I remember the Jazz using the same trick against SA in their gym.

[Felonius Monk]

damn, you guys are old.

Just to make it official that some of us are old, Henry Bibby (father of Mike) and Joe Bryant (father of Kobe) were on that roster.

[SenorSpur]

damn, you guys are old.

We just started young.

That means we just have more Spurs historical references and highlights to educate you youngsters on the board.

In a few years, you too will be harking back to the good ol' days when a guy named Duncan was playing for the team....and newbies will be calling you old too - even though you may not be.

[tlongII]

You missed the most exciting spurs teams ever. When they were out to prove they belonged in the nba. San Antonio was known as the loudest arena in the league back then, and the spurs were a high scoring fun to watch, run and gun team. I also liked Doug Moe.

The loudest arena was Memorial Coliseum in Portland back then.

[degenerate_gambler]

The loudest arena was Memorial Coliseum in Portland back then.


Gotta disagree with you bro.

The old Hemisfair Arena, the one that seated around 10,500...before they raised the roof on it and added 6,000 seats......that place would shake.

I was a ballboy from 1974-1981...there were many, many nights after a game, I could hear the ringing in my ears on the drive home with my dad.

Loud, rowdy people to begin with...they only got moreso after consuming mass quantities of Lone Star beer on dime beer nites.

[ShoogarBear]

Do any of you guys remember the 'power failure' in this game as well?

The Spurs made a run and were up by several points in the third quarter I believe and they clearly had the momentum. Then the lights literally went out in the Capitol Centre and they stopped the game for a few minutes to 'fix' the problem.

I just recall Terry Stembridge being very skeptical about the sudden timing of the problem.Good point. I was not aware of it happening at the time, because I was listening to the game from a rooftop in Boston (because we could get a DC AM radio signal), and it kept fading in and out.

I know they have shown that game on NBA's Greatest Games with commentary from Ice and Bobby Dandridge. Ice specifically stated that he though the power outage was rigged. Dandrige wouldn't comment.

[ShoogarBear]

Gotta disagree with you bro.

The old Hemisfair Arena, the one that seated around 10,500...before they raised the roof on it and added 6,000 seats......that place would shake.

I was a ballboy from 1974-1981...there were many, many nights after a game, I could hear the ringing in my ears on the drive home with my dad.

Loud, rowdy people to begin with...they only got moreso after consuming mass quantities of Lone Star beer on dime beer nites.Sitting on the steps after buying SRO tickets. Those were the days.

[RonMexico]

It was moreso the fact that:
1) it was the first year after the George McGinnis for Bobby Jones trade
2) Doug Collins missed 35 games.


No - moreso the fact that Doug Collins was even on the team. That's usually an automatic 50-loss season, but they were able to win 47 because he was injured that year and didn't pull out another silver medal performance.

[Fabbs]

Can some of you old school Spurs tell me what came down with that traiter owner and on the take coach who let Michael Thompson go to the Lakers in '87 for a cup of coffee in return? Right at the trade deadline so the Flamers could get the PF they desperately needed. I think that coach lost like 25 straight to the Fakers in an era when that just didn't happen. Or was that Phoenix who rolled up and bent over every game vs those Lakers? Cotton Fitzsimmons? Bob Weiss?

[Mitch Cumsteen]

1. The power outage was in Game 6, I believe, and not Game 7. Danny Ferry (whose dad was the Bullets GM at the time) still claims that he pulled the switch. There was also a screwup in Game 6 where some of the Spurs jerseys didn't arrive/got lost and part of the team had to wear inside-out Bullets road jerseys. I remember Mike Gale on the cover of SI with that Bullets jersey on. Needless to say, the NBA has come a long way in the past 30 years or so.

That series broke my heart. The reason why the call by Vanak was so scrutinized was because there was a lot of bad blood between the old guard NBA and the influx of ABA teams, especially from assholes like Red Auerbach, and the conspiracy theories about the league not wanting an ABA team as champion so close to the merger were flying everywhere. Peter Vecsey wrote an awesome article about that call a couple of years ago.

2. The Michael Thompson trade netted the Spurs a first round draft pick (Greg "Cadillac" Anderson), Frank Brickowski and Petur Gudmundsson. It definitely gave the Lakers what they needed to win the championship that year, but the Spurs were rebuilding and needed all the help they could get. Cadillac actually turned out to be decent for a few years until somebody realized that he had the worst hands in the history of the nba. Fortunately, they didn't really figure that out before he and Alvin Robertson were traded for Terry Cummings.

EDIT: I found the Vecsey article:


Turn back the crock: Spurs got robbed in '79
Chicago Sun-Times, Jun 12, 2005 by Peter Vecsey

SAN ANTONIO -- While the rest of you focus on the Spurs' effort to dethrone the Pistons and win their third NBA title, I'll never get over how they got jobbed in Game 7 of the '79 Eastern Conference finals against the Bullets.

Accordingly, the Spurs were prevented from beating up on the Sonics for the championship that should've been theirs.

While ABC is unremittingly zeroing in on Eva Longoria, Tony Parker's trophy girlfriend, I can't get retired referee John Vanak out of my flat-bed mind.

With roughly 2:35 left in a series they once controlled three games to one, the Spurs had possession and led by seven points at the Capital Centre in Landover, Md. James Silas came off a screen set by Billy Paultz that floored Tom Henderson, and Vanak whistled The Whopper for a moving violation.

Bad call

While all eyes were trained Thursday night on the classic individual matchup between Rasheed Wallace and Tim Duncan, I'm picturing Henderson getting up in front of play-by-play voice Terry (There will be another night") Stembridge, doing his last game for the Spurs; the product of DeWitt Clinton High School laughed all the way downcourt, knowing he'd put one over big time on the veteran official.

At the other end, Bobby Dandridge quickly nailed a jumper over Larry Kenon, and the spread was down to five. Despite a 42-point leather rush by George Gervin, the Spurs never recovered Mo-Mentum (as Larry Merchant wrote back in the day before ditching us for HBO) or their wits and lost 107-105.

You'd think it was fixed," coach Doug Moe was quoted afterward completely in context, attests Kevin O'Keeffe, who covered the Spurs at the time for the San Antonio Express-News.

Twenty-six years later, Jeff Van Gundy unwisely broached the same taboo, questioning the integrity of the game and its whistle- blowers ... earning a 100G fine by the league and a reward (two- year extension) by the Rockets despite being outdistanced in the opening round by the Mavericks in Game 7.

Though Moe denied making such an inflammatory statement, he got fined 5G anyway. Radio station KTSA immediately set up a relief fund and collected 500,000 pennies to help out a vanquished antihero.

While the assembled media mob from throughout the world hangs on each word of every player and coach hoping to hear something distinctive, Dick Motta's industrial-strength bluntness continues to reverberate in my cluttered attic.

The Spurs dropped the last three games by a total of 14 points (four, eight and two). The middle one was in San Antonio. Afterward the Bullets coach declared he'd detected the confidence of his opponent beginning to fold up along the dotted lines.

I saw that look in their eyes," Motta dared to say.

Fat lady

After Washington's previous victory, Dan Cook, a columnist for the Express-News and an on-air correspondent for CBS-KENS, either wrote or said (probably both), The opera ain't over until the fat lady sings."

Music to Motta's antennae; without delay he seized the unforgettable phrase and liberally used it as his own war chant from that moment on. Naturally, the rest of us picked it up and pulverized it as well. Bartlett's Quotations gives Cook full credit.

While everyone is rightfully enraptured by Duncan's dream weaving and the Spurs' success over the last seven seasons in spite of playing in a small market and being under-subsidized compared to the battalion of billionaires they're competing against, I'm in awe of what the franchise has been able to accomplish since the Spurs, Nets, Pacers and Nuggets united with the NBA in '76.

Great franchise

In all that time, the Spurs have only had two real down periods, the one preceding the drafting of David Robinson and the one (because of The Admiral's injury) preceding the drafting of Duncan. They were a playoff team with Moe, won three division titles in the early '80s under Stan Albeck, were combative under Cotton Fitzsimmons, hard to extinguish with Larry Brown and a perennial championship contender when Gregg Popovich joined forces with Robinson and Duncan.

While USA Today and others deservedly are throwing bouquets at owner Peter Holt for hiring Popovich and his posse to run the front office and not meddling in personnel decisions, I'm reflecting on the expired spirit of Angelo Drossos (and wife Lillie), a former car salesman and boxing promoter who wouldn't settle for anything short of inclusion in a merger.

I'm also waxing wistfully about Red McCombs (and wife Charline), who bought out Drossos and recently sold the Vikings, and his way with words. He once accused O'Keeffe of asking an inappropriate question. If I answer it one way, you'll say I lied. And if I answer it the other way, I'll give you something you don't need to know."

While everyone is locked into the '05 Finals, I'm stuck on the notion that if Vanak hadn't made that call, the Spurs wouldn't have had to wait until 1999 to become the first ABA team to win an NBA title; it would've happened three years after the consolidation.

[ShoogarBear]

1. The power outage was in Game 6, I believe, and not Game 7. Danny Ferry (whose dad was the Bullets GM at the time) still claims that he pulled the switch. Couldn't have been. It was a 2-2-1-1-1 format, and game 6 was at the HemisFair.

Good article on the Ferry legend. I had forgotten about that.



There was also a screwup in Game 6 where some of the Spurs jerseys didn't arrive/got lost and part of the team had to wear inside-out Bullets road jerseys. I remember Mike Gale on the cover of SI with that Bullets jersey on. Needless to say, the NBA has come a long way in the past 30 years or so.The jersey screwup was in the 1978 ECSF series against the Bullets. Game 3, I believe.

Thanks for the Vecsey article.

[ShoogarBear]

Oh, and Terry Stembridge was the greatest announcer in Spurs history, and one of the greatest play-by-play guys of all time in any sport. It's too bad he decided not to stay with the Spurs, or he would easily have been in the Hall of Fame.

[FromWayDowntown]

Thanks for the Vecsey article.

I can't believe I'm doing this, but I will rely on Vecsey as a source on the Vanak or Madden question.

[ShoogarBear]

Yeah, I know, I was thinking the same thing. But it would have been hard for him to go into that much detail and screw it up. Guess I was wrong on the Paultz vs. Olberding thing, too.

[ArgSpursFan]

You missed the most exciting spurs teams ever. When they were out to prove they belonged in the nba. San Antonio was known as the loudest arena in the league back then, and the spurs were a high scoring fun to watch, run and gun team. I also liked Doug Moe.

I know S.A has been in the NBA for a while,But I think Is the most underrated franchise in NBA(as far as elite teams)
BTW,Parker,Manu,bowen,Duncan,Robinson in 2002 was the best S.A lineup ever.(in my opinion).I know manu wasn´t starting, but they were together at some point on the floor.

[ShoogarBear]

Remember in 1976 when Dave Cowens and some Celtics went up into the stands to fight some fans at the HemisFair?

Strangely enough, nobody was calling for the abolishment of the NBA when Cowens did it . . .

[degenerate_gambler]

Remember in 1976 when Dave Cowens and some Celtics went up into the stands to fight some fans at the HemisFair?

Strangely enough, nobody was calling for the abolishment of the NBA when Cowens did it . . .


I don't remember that. I do recall Cowens and Bird allegedly spit on and wacked a fan with a duffel bag after a game in 1980. Dude sued them and jury found them not guilty.

[cornbread]

I've got a question for the older guys. My dad has always told me that the Baseline Bums were practically a 6th man back in those early days. The example that he often gives is that when this 76ers team would come to town, Darrell Dawkins would not get the warmest of welcomes. Did they really throw bananas at Dawkins or is my old man just exaggerating???

[degenerate_gambler]

I've got a question for the older guys. My dad has always told me that the Baseline Bums were practically a 6th man back in those early days. The example that he often gives is that when this 76ers team would come to town, Darrell Dawkins would not get the warmest of welcomes. Did they really throw bananas at Dawkins or is my old man just exaggerating???


They threw them and had 'em hanging from a big bamboo pole that Big George would wave. You'd even see a gorilla suit or two up in that section.

[cornbread]

They threw them and had 'em hanging from a big bamboo pole that Big George would wave. You'd even see a gorilla suit or two up in that section.
Big George!!! He's told me about this guy too. A real nice guy from what I hear. Wow, my old man's stories are actually turning out to be true. This is a first!

I wish I could have experienced some of those old games. My first game was at Hemisfair in 1990 when I was 9 years old so those games were before my time.

Keep those stories coming guys. This is interesting stuff.

[wildbill2u]

Big George!!! He's told me about this guy too. A real nice guy from what I hear. Wow, my old man's stories are actually turning out to be true. This is a first!

I wish I could have experienced some of those old games. My first game was at Hemisfair in 1990 when I was 9 years old so those games were before my time.

Keep those stories coming guys. This is interesting stuff.
I used to date one of the original bunch of the bums, and have a lot of stories. I could't join or sit with them because even I, with my potty mouth, was embarrassed at the name calling and language they aimed at opponents. Not to mention projectiles like bananas at Dawkins or guacamole at Larry Brown. :spin

The Bums were so active they used to charter a bus for the Houston games--not playoffs necessarily, just plain old games. I went on one of those and swore off. We drank tequila and a keg of beer all the way to Houston 'to get ready' as I recall. In the old Houston arena they had cocktails delivered to your seats. That was all we needed--more "readiness" :rolleyes

I remember one Bum had one of those long red plastic horns that sounded like a diesel truck horn when it went off. He kept blowing it and finally an exquisitely dressed Houston lady sitting in front of him turned around, almost in tears, and asked him to quit blowing it. Wrong move. He deliberately blew it next to her ears until she and her husband left the arena.
It was a victory of sorts I guess.:clap Until the cops came. :nope

[wildbill2u]

Remember in 1976 when Dave Cowens and some Celtics went up into the stands to fight some fans at the HemisFair?

Strangely enough, nobody was calling for the abolishment of the NBA when Cowens did it . . .
I think you're referring to the brawl between the Nets and the Spurs that cleared both benches. It spilled over into the crowd when some of our snockered citizens decided to throw beer and holler insults at huge athletes that can run like deer. Not a good idea.

One fat guy got into it with Rich Jones, a PF at 6'10 with an AFRO and a real bad attitude on the court, an old time enforcer you don't see in the league anymore. He wasn't about to take shit from some fat nerd on the floor.

The next thing you saw was the fat guy actually outrunning Jones up the stairs for the safety of the upper reaches of the Arena. I guess fear won out over rage. I was laughing so hard I dropped my beer on the guy in front of me and we got into it. It was a hell of a night. I miss the hell out of those wild and wooly ABA days.

[ShoogarBear]

I remember that horn.

I also remember their in-house band, "The Sound of the Spurs". I took some guitar lessons from the guy who played for them.

[ShoogarBear]

I think you're referring to the brawl between the Nets and the Spurs that cleared both benches. Nope, that was ABA, as you point out.

This was during the Spurs' first year in the NBA, and it wasn't the Cowens/Bird altercation with a fan which happened after a game in 1980.

Bill Walton remembers it:
http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache:sz8TTzAn1gUJ:www.nba.com/playoffs2002/Wheres_Walton__Day_23.html


The history here in San Antonio at the old HemisFair Arena…Ice Gervin, James Silas, Artis Gilmore, the old owner Red McCombs, who was at the game today, and who could forget the BASELINE BUMS, as WILD and CRAZY a group of fans that have EVER EXISTED in the NBA. So CRAZY, in fact, that the master of decorum, discipline and proper behavior, Dave Cowens, even went up into the stands one day -- years ago -- when he was with the Celtics, to punch out a few over exuberant fans during the game.

[wildbill2u]

I remember that horn.

I also remember their in-house band, "The Sound of the Spurs". I took some guitar lessons from the guy who played for them.
And before we got that shit music they play now, the song that got everyone on their feet and stamping on those aluminum stands down on the floor level was the Orange Blossom Special and Cotton-Eyed-Joe.

They'd start the record with that long violin note that drags out and everyone would leap to their feet and start clapping and stomping with their feet. You could literally feel the vibrations in the air and the build would ROCK!

We didn't proclaim ourselves the loudest arena, that title was given to us by our opponents and visiting sportswriters. But when they extended the Hemisfair arena to gain 6,000 more seat, the acoustics were never the same.

[Capt Bringdown]

Wow, some fantastic memories on this thread. Glad to see I'm not the only old-timer, you guys are great.

Someone mentioned that the infamous "moving pick" game 7 was not televised in SA. I recall watching it on TV...is this yet another hazy memory on my part? Verification, please.

The Hemisphere rocked and I deeply cherish the memories. In addition to the Cotton-eyed joe, there was that Tejano/Spanish number that was also a regular feature and used to bring the house down. (Does anyone remember this and/or know the name of the tune?) Talk about a family atmosphere, in those days you really felt part of the show and that you were involved in something uniquely San Antonio and Texas.

Viva San Antonio!

[degenerate_gambler]

Wow, some fantastic memories on this thread. Glad to see I'm not the only old-timer, you guys are great.

Someone mentioned that the infamous "moving pick" game 7 was not televised in SA. I recall watching it on TV...is this yet another hazy memory on my part? Verification, please.

The Hemisphere rocked and I deeply cherish the memories. In addition to the Cotton-eyed joe, there was that Tejano/Spanish number that was also a regular feature and used to bring the house down. (Does anyone remember this and/or know the name of the tune?) Talk about a family atmosphere, in those days you really felt part of the show and that you were involved in something uniquely San Antonio and Texas.

Viva San Antonio!


That infamous Game 7 was not televised, which was very common in that era.

That tune you're talking about....I cant recall the words, but they would play it only between the 3rd & 4th qtrs...the Bums would stand, sing with the band and by the end of the song, the whole damn arena was singing in Spanish, or trying to!!

They also used to play the hell out of the theme from the 'Blues Brothers'. as well.

[Russ]

That tune you're talking about....I cant recall the words, but they would play it only between the 3rd & 4th qtrs...the Bums would stand, sing with the band and by the end of the song, the whole damn arena was singing in Spanish, or trying to!!
I think you mean that Mexican drinking song with everyone lifting their beer cups in unison. Everyone calls it "Volver" but that isn't the correct title.


They also used to play the hell out of the theme from the 'Blues Brothers' as well.
The words they sung to that song were "The Spurs just can't lose."

The Spurs band also adapted the Jim Croce tune "Bab Bad Leroy Brown" into a song about Spurs foward Larry "Mr. K" Kenon:

He's bad bad Mr. K.
Baddest man in the NBA.
Badder than old Swen Nater.
Quicker than a swamp alligator.

Not the most inspiring lyrics but at least something the fans could get behind. Back then the fans, themselves, provided some of the entertainment. These days, every minute of the contest is way too programmed for that. :)

[rascal]

They need to bring the Cotton Eyed Joe back. That song always brought the house down and seemed to pump up the team.

[degenerate_gambler]

I think you mean that Mexican drinking song with everyone lifting their beer cups in unison. Everyone calls it "Volver" but that isn't the correct title.


That's exactly the one!

[ShoogarBear]

I think you mean that Mexican drinking song with everyone lifting their beer cups in unison. Everyone calls it "Volver" but that isn't the correct title. Is that the song that then used to segue into "Yellow Rose of Texas"?

[Mitch Cumsteen]

I'm pretty sure the song is Volver Volver. Dancing Harry would dance to it holding a beer as his partner. Puro San Antonio.

The Bums were great back in the day. When Kareem's house burned down, the big story was that he lost a priceless jazz record collection. When the Lakers came to down, the Bums held up burning albums.

And they definitely waved bananas at Daryl Dawkins and spit on Larry Bird. Those were some wild days in the Hemisfair Arena. And that place was deafening, even after they raised the roof.

Shoogar,
You're right about that jersey mishap being in the 1978 series, not 1979. Check out Mike Gale in the inside-out jersey.
http://i.cnn.net/si/si_online/covers/images/1978/0508_large.jpg

[Jimcs50]

Gotta disagree with you bro.

The old Hemisfair Arena, the one that seated around 10,500...before they raised the roof on it and added 6,000 seats......that place would shake.

I was a ballboy from 1974-1981...there were many, many nights after a game, I could hear the ringing in my ears on the drive home with my dad.

Loud, rowdy people to begin with...they only got moreso after consuming mass quantities of Lone Star beer on dime beer nites.


I have been to games in many different venues in my years and the Hemisfair Arena was the loudest by far. As he said, your ears would ring for an hour after the game because of the noise during the games. The Lakers even said that they hated playing there even more than The Boston Garden, and I took that as a huge compliment.

[Jimcs50]

Mike Green



ding ding ding

Very good, you win a free dental cleaning.

[baseline bum]

They need to bring the Cotton Eyed Joe back. That song always brought the house down and seemed to pump up the team.

I miss that at Hemisfair. I doubt the crowds they get nowadays would respond though.


I remember one Bum had one of those long red plastic horns that sounded like a diesel truck horn when it went off. He kept blowing it and finally an exquisitely dressed Houston lady sitting in front of him turned around, almost in tears, and asked him to quit blowing it. Wrong move. He deliberately blew it next to her ears until she and her husband left the arena.
It was a victory of sorts I guess.:clap Until the cops came. :nope

Are you talking about Bob? Did you know Leon? That dude was insane with the way he would heckle other teams, doing stuff like dressing up like a giant beer when Mullin came to town right after getting out of the Betty Ford clinic and so on... and Big George Valle makes the best briscuit I've ever had in my life. It's so good the players would come out to the bums' bbqs.

[degenerate_gambler]

I'm pretty sure the song is Volver Volver. Dancing Harry would dance to it holding a beer as his partner. Puro San Antonio.


He got married at mid-court one game. Probably the only game where people didn't get up to leave at halftime.

[wildbill2u]

I miss that at Hemisfair. I doubt the crowds they get nowadays would respond though.



Are you talking about Bob? Did you know Leon? That dude was insane with the way he would heckle other teams, doing stuff like dressing up like a giant beer when Mullin came to town right after getting out of the Betty Ford clinic and so on... and Big George Valle makes the best briscuit I've ever had in my life. It's so good the players would come out to the bums' bbqs.
Can't remember his name, but he was thin, had a heavy 5 O'clock shadow and wore black horn rim glasses.

I was dating Marie Ann. And occasionally went out with her sister when we got drunk enough. Ah, those were the days, my friend. :clap

[wildbill2u]

Wow, some fantastic memories on this thread. Glad to see I'm not the only old-timer, you guys are great.

Someone mentioned that the infamous "moving pick" game 7 was not televised in SA. I recall watching it on TV...is this yet another hazy memory on my part? Verification, please.

The Hemisphere rocked and I deeply cherish the memories. In addition to the Cotton-eyed joe, there was that Tejano/Spanish number that was also a regular feature and used to bring the house down. (Does anyone remember this and/or know the name of the tune?) Talk about a family atmosphere, in those days you really felt part of the show and that you were involved in something uniquely San Antonio and Texas.

Viva San Antonio!
I also remember watching that game. I don't know why it wouldn't have been televised since it was an out of town game. Maybe it was on cable? Either that or they televised it later, but my memory says I got so pissed at the call at the time, I'm pretty sure it was on TV.

[wildbill2u]

The Bum's annual BBQ deserves some mention all its own. George was a great BBQ cook, but the food wasn't the attraction. The feature of the event was the continuous volleyball game with teams made up of Bums (guests) and Spurs.

In those days, the Spurs were much more accessible to the public and they and the Bums were like family. The Spurs knew who their fiercest supporters were and often credited them with energizing the players during games with their cheering and antics.

Most of the Spurs would come out to the BBQ out at the county park as well as coaches like Doug Moe.

Everybody got drunk--and then the killer Volleyball game would start.

The Spurs were good about dividing themselves between the two sides according to height and always with an equal number of the Bums on each side.


It was a lot of fun and sorta exciting just to be on the same court with them, even if it was just for laughs. Players would go on and off the court to drink or puke and others would replace them. Sometimes a player would get hooted off the court if he or she made a particularly bad play.

George Karl was always the fiercest competitor, treating these games like they were life or death on every shot, diving and digging into the sand
for the save. It was the way he played on the court. Mike Gale was pretty serious about winning too as I recall.

It was hilarious to see some out of shape, drunk Bum shouting at a huge Spur to "get you mind in the game, Man, or you out of here and back on the bench!" if the Spur missed a shot. The Spur would smile sheepishly, laugh and promise to do better.

I remember being in the middle of the front line near the net and watching a lobbed return go over the net. Guess how lucky you have to be to lob over a guy that tops 7'? I watched Artis Gilmore sky up in the air across from me to spike it. I swear I'll never forget the evil smile on that normally phlegmatic face, framed by that huge afro, as he prepared to stuff it down my throat. I said, "Fuck this!" and ran for the beer keg. Mama didn't raise me to be a fool. :dizzy

Halcyon Days! In our innocence we thought they'd never end.

[Marcus Bryant]

:lol Lame to drink champagne after winning the conference semifinals.

But it was the first playoff series victory in Spurs history, NBA or ABA.

That's so...Dallas.

[cornbread]

George Karl was always the fiercest competitor, treating these games like they were life or death on every shot, diving and digging into the sand
for the save.

You guys probably think I'm a complete dork for saying this yet again, but my dad has also told me about the legend of George Karl, the overly aggressive picnic volleyball player. I bet that was hillarious to watch.

BTW, this should be a classic thread because you guys are sharing some awesome stories.

[Twisted_Dawg]

Bump

[SPURt]

Good bump, nice to see the potential of spurstalk