1976 NBA Finals - Aftermath

Aftermath

The Celtics would undergo another rebuilding period for the next three years, but not without some controversy. In 1978, then-Celtics owner Irv Levin sold the team to future Kentucky governor John Y. Brown. Brown clashed with Celtics general manager Red Auerbach on control of the franchise, and later sold the team to Harry Mangurian in 1979, after Auerbach considered taking a front office job with the New York Knicks. On court, the Celtics showed its age, losing in the second round to the Philadelphia 76ers in 1977, then enduring two straight losing seasons. John Havlicek retired after the 1977-78 season, and in the 1978 NBA Draft the Celtics selected Larry Bird, but he did not play until the 1979-80 season, after which the team won 61 games, a then-record 32-game turnaround from the previous season. The Celtics won their 14th NBA championship in 1981.

John MacLeod's coaching tenure in Phoenix would last another 11 years but Phoenix would not reach the Finals again until 1993, in which Paul Westphal was the head coach. However, during that 16-year period the Suns would make the playoffs twelve times, advancing to the conference finals four times.

Eight players in this series would go on to be NBA head coaches. Along with the aforementioned Westphal, they were: Pat Riley, Don Nelson, Dave Cowens, Paul Silas, Garfield Heard, Dick Van Arsdale, and John Wetzel.