It's January 1980: Quick, Who's the NBA's Best Guard?

January 20, 1980

Speaking of which, Dennis Johnson has lately been acting like what he often is, namely the league's best guard. He comes here seeking his third straight 30-point game, having already lit up the Bullets (34) and the Knicks (30) on this trip.

Ahh. Doesn't vindication feel great?

No mention of Magic Johnson or anybody else.

Just good ol' #3. Though, back then, I guess he was #24.





What exactly is at stake today (Ch. 7, noon) when the Celtics, with their gaudy 34-11 record, tangle with the NBA champion Seattle SuperSonics, with their impressive 35-13 calling card?

Well, there could be a little East-West macho business. The Pacific Division is clearly the league's best, according to records, but many Pacific people say that Seattle, Los Angeles and Phoenix could all have better marks if they played an Atlantic Division schedule. With the new imbalanced schedule, there have been few East-West confrontations among the teams with the four best records.

The 76ers, who went into a game with Cleveland last night with a 34-11 record of their own, have yet to play either Los Angeles or Seattle. And this will be the first Boston-Seattle meeting.

Meanwhile, LA is smirking over its two-game season's sweep of Boston, which included last Sunday's closely watched 100-98 triumph in the Garden. The 76ers are 2-1 with Boston, which means that in direct competition with the league's elite, the Celtics are 1-4.

Fact is, the Celtics have been struggling since when they began a six-game road odyssey by losing a game in Philadelphia on Dec. 22. Their most recent accomplishment has been to demonstrate that they are now good enough to win while not playing well - at least at home - which is generally viewed as the mark of a superior team.

The most recent example of that came on Friday night, when they reawakened in the third period to run Portland out of town with a 37-15 blast that led to an easy 111-93 victory. The collective confidence of October and November may have been restored with that burst, and it obviously couldn't have come at a better time.

"At least we got our offense going," said Chris Ford. "We've been so stagnant lately. It was very nice to have our offense back."

Coach Bill Fitch agreed: "We probably played as well in that (third- quarter) stretch as we have in ten days."

The Seattle club, which arrives here fresh from a 124-117 conquest of New York (a game in which they once trailed by 20-0), is a smooth, deep, confident team that has casually gone 32-8 following a 3-5 start. It is in the midst of a six-game jaunt that has already taken them to Landover (for an easy 120-100 triumph over Washington) and which will also land them in Atlanta, San Antonio and Houston.

Most fans know the names: Sikma, Williams, Shelton, Downtown Freddy, Silas and, of course, the estimable firm of Johnson & Johnson.

Speaking of which, Dennis Johnson has lately been acting like what he often is, namely the league's best guard. He comes here seeking his third straight 30-point game, having already lit up the Bullets (34) and the Knicks (30) on this trip.

Dennis got off to a poor offensive start, and insiders say his backcourt partner, Gus Williams, had been having a better year - until recently. DJ seems to be in gear now.

So what's at stake? Nothing much, really. Just Boston prestige, TV ratings (hello there, Bill Russell) and the image of the NBA.

Of course, all involved will simply say that it's merely one of 82. It's in the manual.