Overview
The Boston Celtics defeated the Phoenix Suns four games to two in the best-of-seven NBA Finals series to conclude the 1975-76 NBA season. The victory gave the Celtics their second NBA title in three seasons and the 13th in franchise history.
The Suns were making their first Finals appearance and just their second postseason appearance in their eighth season in the league. The Suns would not return to the Finals until 1993.
Jo Jo White won NBA Finals MVP honors, joining John Havlicek as the only Celtics players to win the honor. The Finals MVP award was not given out until 1969, meaning there was no MVP named for the Celtics' first 10 championships.
The Celtics had home-court advantage for the Finals, which were played under the 2-2-1-1-1 format. The Celtics swept the four regular-season meetings between the teams in the 1975-76 season.
The Suns were making their first Finals appearance and just their second postseason appearance in their eighth season in the league. The Suns would not return to the Finals until 1993.
Jo Jo White won NBA Finals MVP honors, joining John Havlicek as the only Celtics players to win the honor. The Finals MVP award was not given out until 1969, meaning there was no MVP named for the Celtics' first 10 championships.
The Celtics had home-court advantage for the Finals, which were played under the 2-2-1-1-1 format. The Celtics swept the four regular-season meetings between the teams in the 1975-76 season.
Road to the Finals
| Team | Suns | Celtics |
| Regular Season | 42-40, 3rd in Midwest Division | 54-28, 1st in Atlantic Division |
| Conference Semifinals | Def. (2) Seattle SuperSonics, 4-2 | Def. (5) Buffalo Braves, 4-2 |
| Conference Finals | Def. (1) Golden State Warriors, 4-3 | Def. (2) Cleveland Cavaliers, 4-2 |
Game 1 - Celtics 98, Suns 87
The Celtics took a 22-20 lead at the end of the first quarter and never gave it up, holding on for an 11-point win. John Havlicek did not start the game, due to a heel injury, but came in with Phoenix leading 10-7 just under five minutes into the game, and played nearly the entire rest of the game.
Dave Cowens led Boston with a triple-double, finishing with 25 points, 21 rebounds and 10 assists. Alvan Adams led the Suns with 26 points.
Dave Cowens led Boston with a triple-double, finishing with 25 points, 21 rebounds and 10 assists. Alvan Adams led the Suns with 26 points.
Game 2 - Celtics 105, Suns 90
After keeping the game close through the first quarter, the Suns were outscored 28-16 in both the second and third quarter as Boston cruised to a 15-point win. The loss was Phoenix's 12th in a row at the Boston Garden.
John Havlicek came off the bench for the second consecutive game, leading the Celtics with 23 points. Dave Cowens, the hero of Game 1, had 16 points and 12 rebounds for Boston. Paul Westphal led Phoenix with 28 points, while Alvan Adams chipped in with 19 points and 15 rebounds.
John Havlicek came off the bench for the second consecutive game, leading the Celtics with 23 points. Dave Cowens, the hero of Game 1, had 16 points and 12 rebounds for Boston. Paul Westphal led Phoenix with 28 points, while Alvan Adams chipped in with 19 points and 15 rebounds.
Game 3 - Suns 105, Celtics 98
The Suns came out of the gate hot at home, opening up a nine-point lead in the first quarter and leading by 13 at halftime. Phoenix extended the lead to 23 points during the third quarter, before Boston began its comeback. The Suns' lead was cut to just two points with 2:15 left, but the Suns responded and held on for the win.
The Suns' Ricky Sobers and the Celtics' Kevin Stacom were ejected after a fight in the second quarter. It was the second time the two had fought during the season.
Alvan Adams scored 12 of his 33 points in the final five minutes to lead the Suns, who snapped an eight-game losing streak to the Celtics. Jo Jo White led the Celtics with 24 points. Dave Cowens had 13 points and 17 rebounds, but also picked up one of the four technical fouls called on the Celtics.
The Suns' Ricky Sobers and the Celtics' Kevin Stacom were ejected after a fight in the second quarter. It was the second time the two had fought during the season.
Alvan Adams scored 12 of his 33 points in the final five minutes to lead the Suns, who snapped an eight-game losing streak to the Celtics. Jo Jo White led the Celtics with 24 points. Dave Cowens had 13 points and 17 rebounds, but also picked up one of the four technical fouls called on the Celtics.
Game 4 - Suns 109, Celtics 107
Following the physical play of Game 3, the officials called the two teams for 64 combined fouls, sending them to the free throw line for 80 attempts, preventing either team from getting into a flow. Late in the game, Phoenix led by four, before Dave Cowens hit a running hook to cut the lead in half. After forcing a Keith Erickson miss, the Celtics got the ball back, but Jo Jo White's game-tying shot went wide, and the Suns tied the series.
Phoenix finished the game 35-of-41 from the free throw line, earning four more points from the charity stripe than the Celtics (31-of-39). Paul Westphal led the Suns with 28 points and nine assists. White led Boston with 25 points, five assists and four steals. Despite the high number of fouls called, the only player to foul out was Celtics guard Charlie Scott.
Phoenix finished the game 35-of-41 from the free throw line, earning four more points from the charity stripe than the Celtics (31-of-39). Paul Westphal led the Suns with 28 points and nine assists. White led Boston with 25 points, five assists and four steals. Despite the high number of fouls called, the only player to foul out was Celtics guard Charlie Scott.
Game 5 - Celtics 128, Suns 126 (3 OT)
In one of the greatest games in NBA history, the Celtics took a huge first-quarter lead, but the Suns stormed back in the second half, finally taking the lead late in the fourth quarter 95-94. However, Alvan Adams fouled out, sending John Havlicek to the line. Havlicek made one of two free throws and Phoenix missed a potential game-winning shot with three seconds left. Paul Silas signaled for a timeout for the Celtics, who had none, but was ignored by the officials. Had the officials granted the timeout, the Celtics would have been called for a technical foul, giving the Suns a chance to win the game on a free throw in regulation.
Both teams scored six points in the first overtime, forcing a second overtime session. Boston took a 109-106 lead, but Dick Van Arsdale hit a jumper to cut the lead to one and the Suns got a steal on the next possession, leading to a Curtis Perry layup, putting the Suns up 110-109. Havlicek responded by hitting a running jumper to put Boston up 111-110, sending hundreds of fans on to the court in celebration. One of the fans attacked referee Richie Powers and had to be dragged away by the police. In all the confusion, few people noticed that Powers indicated two seconds remained and the Suns would be inbounding from under their own basket.
After 10 minutes, the court was finally cleared, and Suns coach John MacLeod called a timeout, even though the Suns had none, resulting in a technical foul. Jo Jo White made the technical free throw for the Celtics, but the Suns got to advance the ball to midcourt to attempt a game-tying shot. Gar Heard made a long turnaround jumper at the buzzer, forcing a third overtime.
With the fans still lining the court and police holding them back, the Celtics took a six-point lead in the third overtime, before Paul Westphal made back-to-back baskets to cut the lead to two with 12 seconds left. White managed to dribble out the clock for Boston, sending the fans streaming onto the court for the final time.
White led all scorers with 33 points, and he and Havlicek were the only Celtics starters who did not foul out. Dave Cowens had 26 points and 19 rebounds before picking up his sixth foul. With three starters disqualified after picking up six fouls, the Celtics got eight points from Glen McDonald, including six in the third overtime. The Suns were led by Westphal and Ricky Sobers, who each scored 25 points. All five Suns starters scored at least 17 points, accounting for 110 of Phoenix's 126 points.
When the NBA compilied its list of the 60 Greatest Playoff Moments to coincide with the league's 60th anniversary, this game was ranked No. 6 on the list.
Both teams scored six points in the first overtime, forcing a second overtime session. Boston took a 109-106 lead, but Dick Van Arsdale hit a jumper to cut the lead to one and the Suns got a steal on the next possession, leading to a Curtis Perry layup, putting the Suns up 110-109. Havlicek responded by hitting a running jumper to put Boston up 111-110, sending hundreds of fans on to the court in celebration. One of the fans attacked referee Richie Powers and had to be dragged away by the police. In all the confusion, few people noticed that Powers indicated two seconds remained and the Suns would be inbounding from under their own basket.
After 10 minutes, the court was finally cleared, and Suns coach John MacLeod called a timeout, even though the Suns had none, resulting in a technical foul. Jo Jo White made the technical free throw for the Celtics, but the Suns got to advance the ball to midcourt to attempt a game-tying shot. Gar Heard made a long turnaround jumper at the buzzer, forcing a third overtime.
With the fans still lining the court and police holding them back, the Celtics took a six-point lead in the third overtime, before Paul Westphal made back-to-back baskets to cut the lead to two with 12 seconds left. White managed to dribble out the clock for Boston, sending the fans streaming onto the court for the final time.
White led all scorers with 33 points, and he and Havlicek were the only Celtics starters who did not foul out. Dave Cowens had 26 points and 19 rebounds before picking up his sixth foul. With three starters disqualified after picking up six fouls, the Celtics got eight points from Glen McDonald, including six in the third overtime. The Suns were led by Westphal and Ricky Sobers, who each scored 25 points. All five Suns starters scored at least 17 points, accounting for 110 of Phoenix's 126 points.
When the NBA compilied its list of the 60 Greatest Playoff Moments to coincide with the league's 60th anniversary, this game was ranked No. 6 on the list.
Game 6 - Celtics 87, Suns 80
Both teams showed the effects from their extended game two days earlier, combining for just 71 points in the first half. Boston took a five-point lead at halftime, but the two teams were separated by just a point heading into the final quarter. Phoenix took the lead with 7:25 left in the game, but the Celtics responded with an 11-4 run and never looked back, earning their 13th NBA championship.
Charlie Scott led Boston with 25 points and Dave Cowens had 21 points and 17 rebounds. Jo Jo White had 15 points, five rebounds and six assists, earning series MVP honors. He finished the series averaging a team-high 21.7 points per game and 5.8 assists per game.
Alvan Adams led the Suns with 20 points and six assists. Phoenix was out-rebounded 53-39 in the final game of the series.
Charlie Scott led Boston with 25 points and Dave Cowens had 21 points and 17 rebounds. Jo Jo White had 15 points, five rebounds and six assists, earning series MVP honors. He finished the series averaging a team-high 21.7 points per game and 5.8 assists per game.
Alvan Adams led the Suns with 20 points and six assists. Phoenix was out-rebounded 53-39 in the final game of the series.