1966-1967 Philadelphia 76ers: Winning One for Wilt

April 3rd, 2016
By SLB
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[paypal_donation_button]1966-1967 Philadelphia 76ers: Winning One for Wilt

Dolph Schayes was the head coach of the Philadelphia 76ers for the 1965-1966 NBA season, and having guided them to the Eastern Division Finals that year, there were expectations that Schayes would figure out the puzzle that was the Boston Celtics dynasty. However, the 76ers fell to the Celtics 4 games to 1 and Schayes would be fired, leaving behind a 128-111 career coaching record in Philadelphia. In came Alex Hannum to be the new head coach, and Hannum had previously guided the St. Louis Hawks to an NBA Championship in 1957-1958.

The 76ers went 68-13 in the 1966-1967 NBA season, finishing 8 games ahead of the Boston Celtics for the Eastern Division crown. Center Wilt “the Stilt” Chamberlain was a big reason for Philadelphia’s success as he had 1,956 total points and grabbed an astonishing 1,957 rebounds to go along with 630 assists. Chamberlain averaged 24.1 points, 24.2 rebounds and 7.8 assists per game, and he would be named the NBA regular season Most Valuable Player and selected to the All-NBA First Team.

Guard Hal Greer had 1,765 total points, 422 rebounds and 303 assists and averaged 22.1 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game. Greer would be selected to the All-NBA Second Team. Small forward Chet “The Jet” Walker had 1,567 total points, 660 rebounds and 188 assists and averaged 19.3 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game. Power forward and center Luke Jackson had 970 total points, 724 rebounds and 114 assists and averaged 12 points and 8.9 rebounds per game.

Guard Wali Jones had 1,069 total points, 265 rebounds and 303 assists and averaged 13.2 points, 3.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game. Known as “The Kangaroo Kid”, forward Billy Cunningham had 1,495 total points, 589 rebounds and 205 assists, averaging 18.5 points, 7.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game.

The offensive attack for the 76ers was built around constant ball movement, meaning that the basketball would be frequently passed between all players on the court. This was sometimes referred to as “Celtic Ball”, in an ironic twist. The 76ers had the best 50-game start to a season in NBA history by going 46-4.

The 76ers would face the Cincinnati Royals in the Eastern Division Semifinals, and in Game 1 on March 21, 1967 the 76ers would lose 120-116. Guard Oscar Robertson had 33 points for the Royals while center Connie Dierking had 29 points and shooting guard Adrian Smith had 20 points. For Philadelphia Wilt Chamberlain had 41 points and Hal Greer had 23 points.

The 76ers would change things for the better in Game 2 on March 22 as they won 123-102. Chamberlain had 37 points, Greer had 28 points, Chet Walker had 20 points and Wali Jones had 19 points. Oscar Robertson had 29 points for Cincinnati while Connie Dierking had 21 points and point guard Flynn Robinson had 18 points.

In Game 3 on March 24 the 76ers won again by the score of 121-106. Robertson had 25 points and Robinson had 24 points for the Royals, but Greer took over for the 76ers, scoring 33 points. Walker had 24 points and Billy Cunningham had 21 points. In Game 4 on March 25 the 76ers shut the door on the Royals for good, winning the game 112-94 and winning the series 3 games to 1. Although forward Harold “Happy” Hairston had 26 points and Adrian Smith had 18 points for Cincinnati, they couldn’t match up with Philadelphia’s firepower as Greer had 30 points, Walker had 23 points, and Wilt and Wali both had 18 points.

Advancing to the Eastern Division Finals, the 76ers would take on their nemesis the Boston Celtics, and in Game 1 on March 31 the 76ers struck first with a 127-113 victory at home. Though the Celtics came prepared with guard and forward Sam Jones, who scored 24 points, small forward and shooting guard John Havlicek, who scored 22 points, and center Bill Russell, who scored 20 points, the 76ers beat them to the punch. Hal Greer had 39 points, Wilt Chamberlain and Wali Jones both had 24 points and Chet Walker had 18 points.

In Game 2 on April 2 at the Boston Garden, Philadelphia would win again by the score of 107-102, evenly spreading out the scoring. Walker had 23 points, Jones had 22 points, Greer had 17 points, and Chamberlain and Luke Jackson both had 15 points. The Kangaroo Kid also scored 13 points. Havlicek had 26 points for Boston and forward Bailey Howell had 23 points, but the rest of the Celtics couldn’t find their offensive rhythm.

Going back to Philadelphia for Game 3 on April 5, the 76ers won again by the score of 115-106. The Celtics tried their best to keep up as Havlicek had 33 points and Jones had 22 points, but the 76ers countered with 30 points from Greer, 21 points from Jones, 20 points from Chamberlain and 18 points from Walker. Boston would win their only game of the series in Game 4 on April 9 121-117. Jackson had 29 points for the 76ers while Greer had 28 points, Chamberlain had 20 points and Walker had 18 points. However, the one-two punch of Sam Jones and John Havlicek decided the game with 32 and 31 points respectively.

Thankfully for Philadelphia, they would put Boston away in Game 5 on April 11 at home with a 140-116 win. Havlicek had 38 points, Larry Siegfried had 24 points and Sam Jones had 19 points, but the 76ers countered that with Greer scoring 32 points, Chamberlain scoring 29 points, Wali Jones scoring 20 points and Cunningham scoring 21 points.

The Philadelphia 76ers faced the San Francisco Warriors in the 1967 NBA Finals, and the 76ers would win a 141-135 overtime thriller in Game 1 on April 14. San Francisco small forward Rick Barry was easily the best scorer on his team as he had 37 points. Center and power forward Nate Thurmond had 24 points and forward Tom Meschery had 20 points. Hal Greer stayed hot for Philadelphia as he had 32 points, and Wilt Chamberlain was right behind him with 30 points. The Kangaroo Kid had 26 points and The Jet had 23 points.

In Game 2 on April 16 the 76ers won again by the score of 126-95. Although Barry had 30 points, he would be trumped by a whole team of offense. Greer had 30 points, Cunningham had 28 points, Walker had 18 points and Jones had 16 points. Going to San Francisco for Game 3 on April 18, the Warriors would beat the 76ers 130-124. Rick Barry exploded on the court by scoring 55 points while guard Jim King had 28 points.

The 76ers came back to win Game 4 on April 20 by the score of 122-108. Hal Greer had 38 points and Chet Walker had 33 points for Philadelphia while Rick Barry had 43 points and Jim King had 23 points for San Francisco. The Warriors would respond with another win in Game 5 on April 23. Barry had 36 points while Meschery and Thurmond both had 17 points in San Francisco’s 117-109 victory. Even in a losing effort, Walker had 25 points, Greer and Chamberlain both had 20 points and Jones had 16 points.

Game 6 proved to be the end for the Warriors as the 76ers edged them out with a 125-122 win on April 24 to give Wilt Chamberlain the first NBA Championship of his storied career. Rick Barry remained a relentless scorer as he had 44 points. Shooting guard Jeff “Pork Chop” Mullins had 23 points and Jim King had 19 points, but the efficiency of Philadelphia’s offense was too much. Wali Jones had 27 points, Wilt Chamberlain had 24 points, Chet Walker had 20 points and Billy Cunningham had 17 points. Wilt Chamberlain himself once referred to the 1966-1967 Philadelphia 76ers as the best team in NBA history, and going by the numbers, basketball fans can make a valid case for this team.