June 4, 1976: Triple Overtime at the Boston Garden

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June 4, 1976, 50 years ago: Game 5 of the 1976 NBA Finals is played at the Boston Garden. It’s been called the greatest game in NBA history.

The Boston Celtics made Paul Westphal the 10th pick in the 1972 NBA Draft. In his rookie season, 1972-73, the Celtics went 68-14, still the best record in team history. But they lost the Eastern Conference Finals to the New York Knicks. In 1974, coached by former Celtic star Tommy Heinsohn, they went all the way, beating the Milwaukee Bucks in the Finals. Westphal had a ring in his 2nd season.

But he would not have a place on the Celtics. In 1975, they traded him and a pair of 2nd round draft picks to the Phoenix Suns for Charlie Scott. With a starting five of Westphal and Ricky Sobers at guard, Garfield Heard and Curtis Perry at forward, and Alvan Adams at center, with guard Dick Van Arsdale and center Dennis Awtrey coming off the bench, coach John MacLeod's Suns made the Playoffs for only the 2nd time in team history, beating the Seattle SuperSonics and the defending NBA Champion Golden State Warriors, and advancing to their 1st NBA Finals.

And the Finals would be against Westphal's former team, the Celtics. Heinsohn had a starting five of guards Scott and Jo Jo White, forwards John Havlicek (who'd been with the Celtics since the 1962-63 title) and Paul Silas, and center Dave Cowens, and a bench that included forward Don Nelson, who'd been with them since their 1966 title, Heinsohn's team was strong and battle-hardened.

Surprising no one, the 1st 4 games were all won by the home teams: The Celtics won Games 1 and 2 at the Boston Garden, 98-87 and 105-90; while the Suns won Games 3 and 4, the 1st finals games in Arizona in any sport, at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum, the 1st saddle-roofed arena in North America, 105-98 and 109-107.

Game 5, at the Boston Garden, has gone down in legend. The Celtics jumped out to a 36-18 lead after 1 quarter, and led 61-45 at the half. But the Suns came back, closed to within 77-72 after 3 quarters, and regulation ended 95-95.

The 1st overtime could not find a winner, ending 101-101. Havlicek appeared to have hit a game-winning shot at the end of the 2nd overtime, making it 111-110 Boston. The fans incorrectly thought the game was over, and stormed the court. When referee Richie Powers tried to get it cleared, a Celtic fan assaulted him. The fan was arrested.

Westphal knew he had 2 seconds left. The recently-folded American Basketball Association had the 3-point field goal, but the NBA would not adopt it until 1979. And the Suns had to inbound the ball under their own basket, and get the ball all the way down the court, 94 feet.

Westphal called timeout -- knowing that the Suns didn't have any left. This resulted in a technical foul, giving the Celtics a single free throw, which White made, making it 112-110 Boston. But now, the Suns could inbound at halfcourt, in the hope of trying the game. It was the basketball equivalent of the football tactic of running the ball out of your own end zone, giving the other team 2 points for a safety, but giving your punter more room. It was the kind of tactic that would later make Scottish soccer manager George Graham say, "If it works, you're a hero. And if it doesn't work, you're a villain."

Perry made the inbound pass to Heard, who fired a turnaround jumper at the top of the key, over Nelson. He made it, sending the game to a 3rd overtime. Broadcasting the game on CBS, Brent Musberger yelled, "I don't believe it!" Even after the Bill Russell era, seasoned observers were not used to seeing the Celtics pushed this hard on their own parquet floor.

But the Suns were exhausted, despite the Celtics' starting 5 averaging 50 minutes, to the Suns' 46, with Heard topping out at 61 minutes out of the 63. The Celtics took control from the opening tipoff of the 3rd overtime, taking a 128-122 lead. The Suns closed to 128-126, but that was as close as they got.

Scoring for the Celtics: White 33, Cowens 26, Havlicek 22, Silas 17, Jim Ard and Glenn McDonald each with 8, Nelson and Steve Kuberski each with 4, and Kevin Stacom played 3 minutes without attempting a shot.

For the Suns: Westphal and Sobers each scored 25, Perry 23, Adams 20, Heard 17, Awtrey 7, Van Arsdale 5, Nate Hawthorne 4, and Phil Lumpkin and Keith Erickson did not score, although Lumpkin had 4 assists and a rebound, and Erickson had an assist. Pat Riley, who, like Erickson, had been a reserve on the Los Angeles Lakers' 1972 title, did not get into the game, despite it lasting 63 minutes.

Emotionally drained, the Suns did not recover, and lost Game 6 at home, 87-80, and the Celtics were World Champions again.

Maybe both teams were drained: No player on either roster ever won another title, Havlicek retiring in 1978 with 8. The Celtics got old in a hurry, and needed a serious rebuild. If Kuberski's name doesn't mean anything to you, note this: He was the last Celtic to wear Number 33 before Larry Bird.

The Suns missed the Playoffs the next season, but they didn't need as much tinkering as the Celtics did. They made the Playoffs every season from 1978 to 1985, including returns to the Conference Finals in 1979 and 1984. In 1993, Westphal would coach them to the Western Conference title, but they lost the NBA Finals to the Chicago Bulls. That Finals, too, would have a triple-overtime game, Game 3 in Chicago. That one, the Suns won. So 2 NBA Finals games have gone to three overtimes, and the Phoenix Suns have been in both of them.

Westphal, Havlicek, Cowens, Scott and White would be elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame. So would the Suns' Riley and the Celtics' Nelson, each as coaches.

The Suns reached the NBA Finals again in 2021, but none of the games went to overtime. They lost to the Milwaukee Bucks. The Celtics have since been to 9 Finals, winning in 1981, 1984, 1986, 2008 and 2024; and losing in 1985, 1987, 2010 and 2022.

Referee Richie Powers died in 1998, Nate Hawthorne in 2005, Celtic backup guard Jerome Anderson (who did not play in this game) and Phil Lumpkin in 2009, Jo Jo White in 2018, John MacLeod and John Havlicek in 2019, Tommy Heinsohn in 2020, Paul Westphal in 2021, Paul Silas in 2022, and Dick Van Arsdale in 2024.

Still alive from this game, 50 years later: Celtic players Dave Cowens, Don Nelson, Charlie Scott (also known by his Muslim name, Shaheed Abdul-Aleem), Jim Ard, Tom Boswell, Steve Kuberski, Glenn MacDonald, Ed Searcy and Kevin Stacom; and Suns players Pat Riley, Gar Heard, Alvan Adams, Dennis Awtrey, Ricky Sobers, Curtis Perry, Keith Erickson and John Wetzel.