1980
Reigning belt holder: George Gervin (X2)
NBA Champion: Los Angeles Lakers
MVP: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Finals MVP: Magic Johnson
Scoring champ: George Gervin (33.1)
PER champ: Julius Erving (25.4)
The candidates:
George Gervin: Gervin won his 3rd straight scoring title in 1980, and looked good doing it. Posting a career-best 33.1ppg while shooting 53.6% from the floor, Gervin remained the NBA's most efficient scorer as well as its best volume scorer, posting a PER of 24, easily the best of any guard in the league and 5th overall. The once-dominant Spurs however, went backward. A significantly stronger east relegated the Spurs to a .500 record, and in a short first round matchup with the Rockets, the Iceman scored 44 points to lead the Spurs to a decisive game 3 in Houston, then added 37 more when he got there. Unfortunately. Moses Malone and Calvin Murphy combined to score 70, and the Spurs were routed by 21 points to end their season.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: The NBA's most productive and least happy center got his mojo back in 1980, with gift from the basketball gods in #1 overall pick Magic Johnson. Giving the Lakers a much-needed dose of enthusiasm and chemistry, Kareem started to enjoy basketball for once, and it reflected in his play. Increasing his scoring to 24.8ppg, pulling down 10.8 rebounds, dishing out 4.5 assists, blocking a league-best 3.4 blocks and shooting a career-best 60% from the floor, the Captain led the new-look Lakers to the top of the western conference with 60 wins, and was awarded his record 6th MVP trophy at age 32. Kareem dominated the suns to the tune of 31.8ppg in a 4-1 beating in the 2nd round, and he got his vengeance on the defending champion sonics, whom had dismantled his team just one year before, in the conference finals. He averaged over 30 points in the series, including 38 in the game 5 clincher that sent LA to the finals for the first time in the Kareem era. Tasting his 2nd ring, Kareem went right at the Sixers, averaging 33.6 points, 13.6 rebounds and 4.5 blocks through the first 5 games, capping it off with 40 points, 15 rebounds and 4 blocks in game 5 as he led LA to a 3-2 series lead. In a cruel twist of irony, he sprained his ankle late in the contest and was unavailable for game 6. Kareem watched from home on TV as 20-year old Magic Johnson, the man that had inspired his comeback season, took over game 6 with 42 points, 15 rebounds and 7 assists as he not only stole the game and the championship for the Lakers, but also the finals MVP award away from Kareem.
Julius Erving: After two substandard seasons following his 1977 coming out party, Julius Erving finally had a team around him that was ready to follow his lead, and lead he did. Boosting his scoring to an NBA career-best 26.9ppg on 52% shooting, along with 7.4 rebounds, 4.6 assist and 2.2 steals, he was finally back to being the doctor of old. The Sixers soared along with him, winning 59 games, good for 3rd in an increasingly top-heavy NBA, and earning Dr. J a 2nd place finish in the MVP race. Erving followed a 30-point performance in the clinching game 5 against the Hawks in the 2nd round with 29 more in another win at Boston Garden against the NBA's #1 seed, the Celtics. He would be the high scorer for the series as the more experience Sixers wiped Boston out in just 5 games to return to the finals for the first time in 3 years. The Lakers couldn't really stop him either. His best performance was 23 points, 10 rebounds, 7 assists, 5 steals and 5 blocks in a game 2 win at the forum, and when he returned there in game 5 he added 36 more points but was ultimately out-dueled by Kareem. He did add 27 points in game 6, but without Kareem the Sixers were caught unprepared for Magic playing center, and the Sixers' season ended with a thud, being run off the floor in their own gym by a 20-year old rookie.
Larry Bird: The dreadful Celtics got their own gift with the addition of 1978 draft pick Larry Bird. Not only was the 23-year old rookie a superstar right out of the box, with averages of 21.3 points, 10.4 rebounds and 4.5 assists, but he led a stunning turnaround for Boston. They went from just 29 wins in 1979 to an NBA-best 61 in 1980, a then-record 32-win improvement, narrowly besting Kareem's first season in Milwaukee. Bird made the all-NBA first team and was a near-unanimous choice for rookie of the year. Bird found his footing in the postseason after a few misfires, scorching Moses and the Rockets for 34 points in game 4 of a 2nd round sweep. While he played admirably in the conference finals with a 22.2 scoring average, the sad truth was the Sixers were ready to compete for a championship and the Celtics were not. Bird scored 31 points in Boston's lone game 2 win, but saw his scoring decrease over the final three games as the Sixers won the east handily.
Reigning belt holder: George Gervin (X2)
NBA Champion: Los Angeles Lakers
MVP: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Finals MVP: Magic Johnson
Scoring champ: George Gervin (33.1)
PER champ: Julius Erving (25.4)
The candidates:
George Gervin: Gervin won his 3rd straight scoring title in 1980, and looked good doing it. Posting a career-best 33.1ppg while shooting 53.6% from the floor, Gervin remained the NBA's most efficient scorer as well as its best volume scorer, posting a PER of 24, easily the best of any guard in the league and 5th overall. The once-dominant Spurs however, went backward. A significantly stronger east relegated the Spurs to a .500 record, and in a short first round matchup with the Rockets, the Iceman scored 44 points to lead the Spurs to a decisive game 3 in Houston, then added 37 more when he got there. Unfortunately. Moses Malone and Calvin Murphy combined to score 70, and the Spurs were routed by 21 points to end their season.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: The NBA's most productive and least happy center got his mojo back in 1980, with gift from the basketball gods in #1 overall pick Magic Johnson. Giving the Lakers a much-needed dose of enthusiasm and chemistry, Kareem started to enjoy basketball for once, and it reflected in his play. Increasing his scoring to 24.8ppg, pulling down 10.8 rebounds, dishing out 4.5 assists, blocking a league-best 3.4 blocks and shooting a career-best 60% from the floor, the Captain led the new-look Lakers to the top of the western conference with 60 wins, and was awarded his record 6th MVP trophy at age 32. Kareem dominated the suns to the tune of 31.8ppg in a 4-1 beating in the 2nd round, and he got his vengeance on the defending champion sonics, whom had dismantled his team just one year before, in the conference finals. He averaged over 30 points in the series, including 38 in the game 5 clincher that sent LA to the finals for the first time in the Kareem era. Tasting his 2nd ring, Kareem went right at the Sixers, averaging 33.6 points, 13.6 rebounds and 4.5 blocks through the first 5 games, capping it off with 40 points, 15 rebounds and 4 blocks in game 5 as he led LA to a 3-2 series lead. In a cruel twist of irony, he sprained his ankle late in the contest and was unavailable for game 6. Kareem watched from home on TV as 20-year old Magic Johnson, the man that had inspired his comeback season, took over game 6 with 42 points, 15 rebounds and 7 assists as he not only stole the game and the championship for the Lakers, but also the finals MVP award away from Kareem.
Julius Erving: After two substandard seasons following his 1977 coming out party, Julius Erving finally had a team around him that was ready to follow his lead, and lead he did. Boosting his scoring to an NBA career-best 26.9ppg on 52% shooting, along with 7.4 rebounds, 4.6 assist and 2.2 steals, he was finally back to being the doctor of old. The Sixers soared along with him, winning 59 games, good for 3rd in an increasingly top-heavy NBA, and earning Dr. J a 2nd place finish in the MVP race. Erving followed a 30-point performance in the clinching game 5 against the Hawks in the 2nd round with 29 more in another win at Boston Garden against the NBA's #1 seed, the Celtics. He would be the high scorer for the series as the more experience Sixers wiped Boston out in just 5 games to return to the finals for the first time in 3 years. The Lakers couldn't really stop him either. His best performance was 23 points, 10 rebounds, 7 assists, 5 steals and 5 blocks in a game 2 win at the forum, and when he returned there in game 5 he added 36 more points but was ultimately out-dueled by Kareem. He did add 27 points in game 6, but without Kareem the Sixers were caught unprepared for Magic playing center, and the Sixers' season ended with a thud, being run off the floor in their own gym by a 20-year old rookie.
Larry Bird: The dreadful Celtics got their own gift with the addition of 1978 draft pick Larry Bird. Not only was the 23-year old rookie a superstar right out of the box, with averages of 21.3 points, 10.4 rebounds and 4.5 assists, but he led a stunning turnaround for Boston. They went from just 29 wins in 1979 to an NBA-best 61 in 1980, a then-record 32-win improvement, narrowly besting Kareem's first season in Milwaukee. Bird made the all-NBA first team and was a near-unanimous choice for rookie of the year. Bird found his footing in the postseason after a few misfires, scorching Moses and the Rockets for 34 points in game 4 of a 2nd round sweep. While he played admirably in the conference finals with a 22.2 scoring average, the sad truth was the Sixers were ready to compete for a championship and the Celtics were not. Bird scored 31 points in Boston's lone game 2 win, but saw his scoring decrease over the final three games as the Sixers won the east handily.
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