1976-77 NBA Season Standings

The ABA-NBA merger brought the New York Nets, Denver Nuggets, Indiana Pacers, and San Antonio Spurs into the NBA, expanding the league from 18 to 22 teams and forcing a four-division realignment: the Nets joined an Atlantic Division that shrank to five teams, the Spurs joined an expanded six-team Central Division, and the Nuggets and Pacers joined an expanded six-team Midwest Division, while the Pacific Division stayed at five teams. Bill Walton's Portland Trail Blazers won the championship, upsetting the higher-seeded Philadelphia 76ers in six games.

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Sourcing caveat: First post-merger season: 22 teams, uneven divisions (Atlantic 5, Central 6, Midwest 6, Pacific 5), so each conference had 11 teams rather than a symmetric split. Boston/San Antonio tied at 44-38 (East), and Detroit/Chicago (44-38) and Kansas City/Seattle (40-42) tied in the West.

Eastern Conference

SeedTeamWLPCTGB
1P7Philadelphia 76ers5032.610-
2HRHouston Rockets4933.5981.0
3WBWashington Bullets4834.5852.0
4BCBoston Celtics4438.5376.0
5SASSan Antonio Spurs4438.5376.0
6CCCleveland Cavaliers4339.5247.0
7NYKNew York Knicks4042.48810.0
8NOJNew Orleans Jazz3547.42715.0
9AHAtlanta Hawks3151.37819.0
10BBBuffalo Braves3052.36620.0
11NYNNew York Nets2260.26828.0

Western Conference

SeedTeamWLPCTGB
1LALLos Angeles Lakers5329.646-
2DNDenver Nuggets5032.6103.0
3PTBPortland Trail Blazers4933.5984.0
4GSWGolden State Warriors4636.5617.0
5DPDetroit Pistons4438.5379.0
6CBChicago Bulls4438.5379.0
7KCKKansas City Kings4042.48813.0
8SSSeattle SuperSonics4042.48813.0
9IPIndiana Pacers3646.43917.0
10PSPhoenix Suns3448.41519.0
11MBMilwaukee Bucks3052.36623.0

Sources

Data last verified: 11 August 2026.

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