Dispirit of 76

It was a classic confrontation: potentate v. parvenu, defense v. offense. The Boston Celtics, National Basketball Association champions for six straight years, were the most successful team in the history of professional sport. The Philadelphia 76'ers did not even exist two years ago. The pride of the Celtics was Bill Russell (6 ft. 10 in.), the N.B.A.'s four-time Most Valuable Player, a brooding defensive genius who gobbles sleeping pills and vomits from tension before every game. The pillar of the 76'ers was Wilt The Stilt Chamberlain, a giant (7 ft. 1-1/16 in.) among giants, who has scored as many as 100 points in a single game, who calls everybody "baby," including his lavender Bentley, and whose bitterness about the game almost equals his success.

Sixteen times in the past five months the two teams had fought it out, and the issue was still in doubt: each had won eight games. Last week in Boston they tried once more--in the finals of the Eastern Division playoffs.

At first it looked like a rout. While Russell controlled the backboards, covering Chamberlain like a shroud, Guard Sam Jones poured in 18 points in the first quarter, and the Celtics leaped into a 35-26 lead. Where was Wilt? All of a sudden, he was there and everywhere. He banked a hook shot high off the backboard, dropped a layup through the net. What's more, the rest of the 76'ers caught fire too; by half time they were ahead 62-61.

Elbow Deep. Back into the game for Boston rushed the Celtics' "sixth man," Forward John Havlicek, who trained for the unsung-hero role as Ohio State's No. 2 man behind three-time All-America Jerry Lucas. Havlicek scored 15 points, and the Celtics bounced back. With 5 sec. to go and Boston leading 110-107, Chamberlain leaped up and rammed the ball through the basket--all the way up to his elbow.

Fine, futile gesture. The Celtics still led 110-109, and they had the ball. All they had to do was freeze, and the game would be over. So the incredible happened. Trying to flip the ball in bounds, Russell gasped with horror as it clipped a support wire on the backboard and caromed off court. There were still 5 sec. left and the 76'ers had the ball again, under the Celtics' basket. Quickly, they called time out. Coach Dolph Schayes outlined his strategy: Guard Hal Greer was to pass deep to Forward Chet Walker, set up a long set shot; Chamberlain was to station himself under the basket and try to stuff in the rebound. In the Boston huddle, Coach Red Auerbach simply told the Celtics to gang up on Chamberlain. Then he turned to Forward Havlicek: "Keep an eye on Walker."

Souvenir Sneaker. Havlicek watched nervously as Greer set himself to throw the ball in. "I could tell he was going deep," he said. "I decided to gamble on the interception." Greer threw, Havlicek pounced. Timing his jump perfectly, he reached up and deflected the ball--straight into the hands of Teammate Sam Jones. The buzzer sounded, and by the narrowest of margins--one slim point--the Celtics retained the Eastern Division championship.

Delirious fans swarmed out of the stands and stormed the court as the weary Celtics tottered to the locker room. A souvenir hunter ripped a sneaker right off Bill Russell's foot. Of course, it was not over yet: the Celtics still had to get past the Los Angeles Lakers to rack up their seventh straight N.B.A. title. "Oh, they'll win," shrugged Chamberlain. But next year, baby! Maybe.

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