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The 1980 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1979–80 NBA season. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was the league's MVP. But midway through Game 5, the Lakers center suffered a severely sprained ankle. He managed to come back in the game in the 4th quarter to lead the Lakers to victory and a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series. But the Lakers still had to travel to Philadelphia for Game 6. Abdul-Jabbar was listed as out of Game 6, although 76ers coach Billy Cunningham was quoted as saying "I won't believe he's not playing until their plane lands and he's not on it." As it turned out, Kareem did not make the trip and was listed as doubtful if Game 7 had been needed. In Game 6, Magic Johnson played what may have been the greatest game of his career. Playing on the road in Philadelphia, Magic (a 6'9" rookie point guard) started the game at center and eventually played all 5 positions in a dominating performance. Scoring a game-high 42 points and grabbing a game-high 15 rebounds—and handing out 7 assists—Magic Johnson led the Lakers to the NBA crown. The Lakers also received strong performances from Jamaal Wilkes with 37 points and 10 rebounds, and Norm Nixon. Jim Chones played strong defense on 76er center Darryl Dawkins, while Mark Landsberger provided rebounding off the bench, and little used Brad Holland chipped in 8 key points. Magic Johnson's performance in Game 6 and the series earned him the 1980 NBA Finals Most Valuable Player. What made Magic Johnson's performance even more remarkable was that he was an NBA rookie—and, indeed, one who had left college after only two years, and was only 20 years old. "Jamaal Wilkes had an unbelievable game," said Johnson in 2011. "Everybody talked about my 42 (), but it was also his (effort )."〔 On a side note, here, in Game 4 of the 1980 Finals, Julius Erving executed the legendary Baseline Move, an incredible, behind-the-board reverse layup that seemed to defy gravity. Play-by-play announcer Brent Musburger has noted that Erving made such moves almost routinely in his ABA days—but the ABA had no national TV contract in those days. This Game 4 move, played to a national audience in a title game, has probably become Julius Erving's most famous move. This was also the first NBA Finals to make use of the three-point line which debuted that very season. ==Background== The last time the Los Angeles Lakers won the NBA championship was in 1972. In the eight years between championships, the Lakers made the NBA Finals again in 1973 and lost to the New York Knicks in five games. Then Wilt Chamberlain and Jerry West retired, and the Lakers would miss the playoffs in 1975 and 1976. In between, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was acquired, and the Lakers returned to prominence in 1977, but Kareem couldn't do it alone. The Lakers earned the top pick of the 1979 NBA Draft (traded as compensation by the New Orleans Jazz after signing Gail Goodrich in 1976) and selected Magic Johnson from Michigan State. While Magic dazzled in his rookie season, Kareem would enjoy an MVP campaign in the Lakers' 60–22 regular season. In the playoffs, the Lakers eliminated the Phoenix Suns and defending champions Seattle SuperSonics in a pair of five-game series to advance to the NBA Finals. The Philadelphia 76ers under Julius Erving made the NBA Finals for the second time in four seasons. After losing to the Portland Trail Blazers in the 1977 NBA Finals, the 76ers hired former player Billy Cunningham as head coach, then in 1978 traded for defensive stalwart Bobby Jones and drafted Maurice Cheeks. In 1980 the 76ers finished 59–23, then eliminated the Washington Bullets in two games, and the Atlanta Hawks in five games. In the Eastern Conference Finals, the 76ers faced NBA Rookie of the Year Award winner Larry Bird and the 61–win Boston Celtics; although Boston won two more regular season games, the more experienced 76ers were favored to win the series. Proving the prognosticators right, Philadelphia won in five games, preventing the first Celtics–Lakers final since 1969. The 76ers were the first of the four Philadelphia professional sports teams to play for their respective sports' championships in the 1980 season. The Flyers lost the Stanley Cup Finals against the New York Islanders in overtime of Game 6, eight days after the 76ers fell to the Lakers in their Game 6. The Phillies beat the Kansas City Royals, themselves in six games, in the World Series. The Eagles lost Super Bowl XV to the Oakland Raiders in January 1981. Of note, this marked the first of the ten NBA Finals played in the 1980s, all of which featured either the Boston Celtics or the Los Angeles Lakers (three Finals featured both teams). 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「1980 NBA Finals」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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