The 1978–79 Seattle SuperSonics season was the team's 12th since the franchise began, and their most successful, winning their first NBA title. This was Seattle's first professional sports championship since the Seattle Metropolitans

Seattle Metropolitans

The Seattle Metropolitans were a professional ice hockey team based in Seattle, Washington which played in the Pacific Coast Hockey Association from 1915 to 1924. They won the Stanley Cup in 1917, becoming the first American team to do so...

 victory in the Stanley Cup in 1917

1917 Stanley Cup Finals

-See also:* 1916–17 NHA season* 1916–17 PCHA season...

.

NBA Draft

Round	Pick	Player	Nationality	School/Club Team
2	39	James Lee James Lee (basketball) James Lee is a retired American basketball player. He won an NCAA championship at the University of Kentucky and was a second-round draft pick in the 1978 NBA Draft....		Kentucky University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky, also known as UK, is a public co-educational university and is one of the state's two land-grant universities, located in Lexington, Kentucky...
2	42	Kevin McDonald		Pennsylvania University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
3	61	Dave Baxter		Michigan University of Michigan The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
4	83	Billy Lewis		Illinois State University Illinois State University Illinois State University , founded in 1857, is the oldest public university in Illinois; it is located in the town of Normal. ISU is considered a "national university" that grants a variety of doctoral degrees and strongly emphasizes research; it is also recognized as one of the top ten largest...
5	105	Ralph Drollinger Ralph Drollinger Ralph Kim Drollinger is an American clergyman and retired professional basketball player. He was a 7'2" and 250 lb center and played collegiately at the University of California, Los Angeles...		UCLA

Depth chart

Pos.	Starter	Bench	Reserve	Inactive
C Center (basketball) The center, colloquially known as the five or the post, is one of the standard positions in a regulation basketball game. The center is normally the tallest player on the team, and often has a great deal of strength and body mass as well...	Jack Sikma Jack Sikma Jack Wayne Sikma is a retired American NBA basketball center. He was known for his distinctive curly, blonde hair in his playing days....	Dennis Awtrey Dennis Awtrey Dennis Wade Awtrey is a retired American professional basketball player. A 6'10" center from Santa Clara University, Awtrey was drafted by the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers in 1970...	Tom LaGarde Tom LaGarde Thomas Joseph LaGarde is a retired American basketball player who played in the NBA from 1977 to 1985. After playing collegiately at the University of North Carolina, LaGarde was selected 9th overall in the first round of the 1977 NBA Draft by the Denver Nuggets.At 6'10" and 220 lb, LaGarde...
PF Power forward (basketball) Power forward is a position in the sport of basketball. The position is referred to in playbook terms as the four position and is commonly abbreviated "PF". It has also been referred to as the "post" position. Power forwards play a role similar to that of center in what is called the "post" or "low...	Lonnie Shelton Lonnie Shelton Lonnie Jewel Shelton is a retired American National Basketball Association player who played from 1976-1985. He played college basketball for Oregon State University. Shelton was drafted by the Memphis Sounds of the American Basketball Association in 1975 but elected to stay in college...	Paul Silas Paul Silas Paul Theron Silas is a retired American professional basketball player and current head coach of the Charlotte Bobcats. He attended Creighton University, where he set an NCAA record for the most rebounds in three seasons and averaged 20.6 rebounds per game in 1963...
SF Small forward The small forward, or colloquially known as three, is one of the five positions in a regulation basketball game. Small forwards are typically somewhat shorter, quicker, and leaner than power forwards and centers, but on occasion are just as tall...	John Johnson John Johnson (basketball) John Howard Getty "J.J." Johnson is a former American basketball player.Johnson was a 6’7” small forward who played high school basketball at Messmer High School, and collegiately for Northwest College in Powell, Wyoming and for the University of Iowa...	Wally Walker Wally Walker Walter Frederick Walker is an American former professional basketball player. Walker is best known for his National Basketball Association career - both as a player and as a front office executive - for the Seattle SuperSonics....		Jackie Robinson Jackie Robinson (basketball) Jackie Robinson is an American former professional basketball player.A 6'6" forward from UNLV, Robinson played in the NBA from 1978 to 1982 as a member of the Seattle SuperSonics, Detroit Pistons, and Chicago Bulls. He averaged 3.8 points per game in his NBA career and won an NBA Championship...
SG Shooting guard The shooting guard , also known as the two or off guard, is one of five traditional positions on a basketball team. Players of the position are often shorter, leaner, and quicker than forwards. A shooting guard's main objective is to score points for his team...	Dennis Johnson Dennis Johnson Dennis Wayne Johnson nicknamed "DJ", was an American professional basketball player for the National Basketball Association's Seattle SuperSonics, Phoenix Suns and Boston Celtics and coach of the Los Angeles Clippers...	Dick Snyder Dick Snyder Richard J. Snyder is an American former National Basketball Association player for the St. Louis Hawks, Phoenix Suns, Seattle SuperSonics, and Cleveland Cavaliers. Snyder attended college at Davidson College, and was drafted by the Hawks in the second round of the 1966 NBA Draft...	Joe Hassett Joe Hassett Joseph Patrick Hassett is a retired American basketball player in the NBA. A 6'5" 180 lb guard, he played college basketball at Providence College, where he still shares a record with four other players to score at least 500 points in a season in three consecutive years...
PG Point guard Point guard , also called the play maker or "the ball-handler", is one of the standard positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position – essentially, he is expected to run the team's offense by controlling the ball and making sure that...	Gus Williams	Fred Brown

Player stats

Note: GP= Games played; MPG= Minutes per Game; STL = Steals; REB = Rebounds; ASST = Assists; BLK = Blocks; PPG = Points per Game

Player	GP	MPG	STL	REB	ASST	BLK	PPG
Dennis Johnson Dennis Johnson Dennis Wayne Johnson nicknamed "DJ", was an American professional basketball player for the National Basketball Association's Seattle SuperSonics, Phoenix Suns and Boston Celtics and coach of the Los Angeles Clippers...

Playoffs

• Won Western Conference Semi Finals (4-1) over Los Angeles Lakers
• Won Western Conference Finals (4-3) over Phoenix Suns

NBA finals

Dennis Johnson

Dennis Johnson

Dennis Wayne Johnson nicknamed "DJ", was an American professional basketball player for the National Basketball Association's Seattle SuperSonics, Phoenix Suns and Boston Celtics and coach of the Los Angeles Clippers...

 of the SuperSonics was the Most Valuable Player of the Finals while Gus Williams of the SuperSonics was the top scorer, averaging 28.6 points per game.

Game	Date	Home Team	Result	Road Team
Game 1	May 20	Washington	99-97	Seattle
Game 2	May 24	Washington	82-92	Seattle
Game 3	May 27	Seattle	105-95	Washington
Game 4	May 29	Seattle	114-112	Washington
Game 5	June 1	Washington	93-97	Seattle

SuperSonics win series 4-1

Award winners

• Dennis Johnson, NBA All-Defensive First Team
• Dennis Johnson, NBA Finals Most Valuable Player

External links

• Seattle PI: Photos | 1979 National Champion Seattle SuperSonics