1972–73 Baltimore Bullets season

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1972–73 Baltimore Bullets season
Division champions
Head coachGene Shue
General managerJerry Sachs
Owner(s)Abe Pollin
ArenaBaltimore Civic Center
Results
Record52–30 (.634)
PlaceDivision: 1st (Central)
Conference: 2nd (Eastern)
Playoff finishConference Semi-finals
(Lost to Knicks 1–4)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
TelevisionWMAR-TV
RadioWFBR
< 1971–72 1973–74 >

In the 1972–73 NBA season, their tenth and final season in Baltimore, Maryland, the Bullets were led by seventh-year head coach Gene Shue and won a third consecutive Central Division title.

Prior to the season in June, forward Elvin Hayes was acquired in a trade from the Houston Rockets, for forward Jack Marin and draft picks.[1] In the 1972 draft in April, Baltimore selected point guard Kevin Porter in the third round. After a slow start, the Bullets had a strong 10–4 record in December.[2] In the playoffs, they faced their playoff rivals the New York Knicks, and fell in five games in the conference semi-finals;[3] the Knicks went on to win the NBA title.

Following the season, the Bullets made a short move to the new Capital Centre in Landover, a suburb east of Washington, D.C., and became the Capital Bullets.[2][4] The Bullets would later play 35 regular season games in Baltimore from the 1988–89 through 1996–97 seasons.[5][6]

Draft picks[]

Main article: 1972 NBA draft

Roster[]

Baltimore Bullets roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB (YYYY-MM-DD) From
G 45 Chenier, Phil 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) California
G 21 Clark, Archie 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Minnesota
C 11 Hayes, Elvin 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Houston
F 13 Love, Stan 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Oregon
F 24 Marin, Jack 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Duke
PG 10 Porter, Kevin 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Saint Francis (PA)
G 33 Rinaldi, Rich 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Saint Peter's
SG 6 Riordan, Mike 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Providence
SF 9 Stallworth, Dave 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Wichita State
PF 12 Tresvant, John 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Seattle
F 41 Unseld, Wes 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 245 lb (111 kg) Louisville
Head coach
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured Injured

Regular season[]

Season standings[]

Central Division
W L PCT GB Home Road Neutral Div
y-Baltimore Bullets 52 30 .634 – 24–9 21–17 7–4 17–5
x-Atlanta Hawks 46 36 .561 6 28–13 17–23 1–0 10–12
Houston Rockets 33 49 .402 19 14–14 10–28 9–7 9–13
Cleveland Cavaliers 32 50 .390 20 20–21 10–27 2–2 8–14
# Eastern Conference
Team W L PCT
1 z-Boston Celtics 68 14 .829
2 x-New York Knicks 57 25 .695
3 y-Baltimore Bullets 52 30 .634
4 x-Atlanta Hawks 46 36 .561
5 Houston Rockets 33 49 .402
6 Cleveland Cavaliers 32 50 .390
7 Buffalo Braves 21 61 .256
8 Philadelphia 76ers 9 73 .110

Record vs. opponents[]

1972–73 NBA records
Team ATL BAL BOS BUF CHI CLE DET GSW HOU KCO LAL MIL NYK PHI PHO POR SEA
Atlanta – 3–4 1–5 5–1 2–2 3–4 2–2 1–3 4–4 2–2 3–1 1–3 3–3 6–0 3–1 4–0 3–1
Baltimore 4–3 – 1–5 5–1 0–4 8–0 2–2 3–1 5–2 3–1 1–3 2–2 3–3 5–1 2–2 4–0 4–0
Boston 5–1 5–1 – 7–0 3–1 5–1 3–1 3–1 5–1 3–1 4–0 2–2 4–4 7–0 4–0 4–0 4–0
Buffalo 1–5 1–5 0–7 – 2–2 1–5 1–3 0–4 1–5 1–3 0–4 0–4 1–6 7–1 1–3 2–2 2–2
Chicago 2–2 4–0 1–3 2–2 – 3–1 3–4 3–3 4–0 5–2 1–5 2–4 3–1 4–0 4–2 5–1 5–1
Cleveland 4–3 0–8 1–5 5–1 1–3 – 1–3 1–3 4–3 2–2 1–3 1–3 0–6 6–0 1–3 1–3 3–1
Detroit 2–2 2–2 1–3 3–1 4–3 3–1 – 2–4 1–3 3–3 1–5 2–5 1–3 3–1 4–2 6–0 2–4
Golden State 3–1 1–3 1–3 4–0 3–3 3–1 4–2 – 3–1 4–2 3–4 1–5 2–2 4–0 2–4 5–1 4–3
Houston 4–4 2–5 1–5 5–1 0–4 3–4 3–1 1–3 – 0–4 1–3 1–3 1–5 5–1 2–2 2–2 2–2
Kansas City-Omaha 2–2 1–3 1–3 3–1 2–5 2–2 3–3 2–4 4–0 – 1–5 1–6 0–4 3–1 3–3 4–2 4–2
Los Angeles 1–3 3–1 0–4 4–0 5–1 3–1 5–1 4–3 3–1 5–1 – 3–3 2–2 4–0 6–1 6–0 6–0
Milwaukee 3–1 2–2 2–2 4–0 4–2 3–1 5–2 5–1 3–1 6–1 3–3 – 2–2 3–1 5–1 5–1 5–1
New York 3–3 3–3 4–4 6–1 1–3 6–0 3–1 2–2 5–1 4–0 2–2 2–2 – 6–1 3–1 3–1 4–0
Philadelphia 0–6 1–5 0–7 1–7 0–4 0–6 1–3 0–4 1–5 1–3 0–4 1–3 1–6 – 0–4 1–3 1–3
Phoenix 1–3 2–2 0–4 3–1 2–4 3–1 2–4 4–2 2–2 3–3 1–6 1–5 1–3 4–0 – 5–2 4–2
Portland 0–4 0–4 0–4 2–2 1–5 3–1 0–6 1–5 2–2 2–4 0–6 1–5 1–3 3–1 2–5 – 3–4
Seattle 1–3 0–4 0–4 2–2 1–5 1–3 4–2 3–4 2–2 2–4 0–6 1–5 0–4 3–1 2–4 4–3 —

Playoffs[]

1973 playoff game log
Conference Semi-finals: 1–4 (Home: 1–1; Road: 0–3)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Series
1 March 30 @ New York L 83–95 Archie Clark (22) Wes Unseld (16) Archie Clark (6) Madison Square Garden
19,694 		0–1
2 April 1 @ New York L 103–123 Phil Chenier (27) Wes Unseld (14) Kevin Porter (7) Madison Square Garden
19,694 		0–2
3 April 4 New York L 96–103 Elvin Hayes (36) Elvin Hayes (14) Riordan, Clark (4) Baltimore Civic Center
12,289 		0–3
4 April 6 New York W 97–89 Elvin Hayes (34) Hayes, Unseld (13) Archie Clark (10) Baltimore Civic Center
12,289 		1–3
5 April 8 @ New York L 99–109 Archie Clark (30) Wes Unseld (21) Chenier, Unseld (4) Madison Square Garden
19,694 		1–4
1973 schedule

Awards and honors[]

References[]

  1. ^ "Bullets gets 'Big E' for Marin, plus". Milwaukee Sentinel. UPI. June 24, 1972. p. 1, part 2.
  2. ^ a b Washington Wizards (1963–Present)
  3. ^ Roethenberg, Fred (April 9, 1973). "Knicks eliminate Baltimore Bullets". Free Lance-Star. (Fredericksburg, Virginia). Associated Press. p. 6.
  4. ^ "Baltimore five set to become Capital Bullets". Bangor Daily News. (Maine). Associated Press. February 17, 1973. p. 21.
  5. ^ The last time the Washington Bullets played in Baltimore United Press International
  6. ^ "Bullets leave Baltimore with win Mavericks fall, 94-87" The Baltimore Sun
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