Washington Wizards

The Washington Wizards are a professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C.. They play in the National Basketball Association (NBA). more...

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Home arenas

International Amphitheatre (1961-1962)

Chicago Coliseum (1962-1963)

Baltimore Civic Center (later the Baltimore Arena, now 1st Mariner Arena) (1963-1973)

USAir Arena (originally Capital Center) (1973-1997)

Verizon Center (formerly MCI Center) (1997-present)

Franchise history

The team now known as the Wizards started as the Chicago Packers in the 1961-62 season. The next season, they changed their name to the Zephyrs. And the season after that, they moved to Baltimore, Maryland and became the Baltimore Bullets, no relation to the 1940s Bullets franchise.

The Late 1960's And 1970's

In 1968 the Bullets got two future Hall of Famers: Earl Monroe and Wes Unseld. Instantly the team improved dramatically; in the 1968-69 season, the Bullets made the playoffs with high expectations to go further, but they went back down to earth as they were eliminated by the New York Knicks that season in the first round. The next season the two teams met again in the first round, and although this one went to 7 games, the Knicks barely advanced to the next round.

In the 1970-71 season, the Bullets again met the Knicks, this time though in the Eastern Conference Finals. With the Knicks team captain Willis Reed injured in the finals, the injury-free Bullets took advantage of his abscence, and in Game 7 at New York's Madison Square Garden, the Bullets' Gus Johnson made a critical basket late in the game to lift the Bullets over the Knicks 93-91 and advance to their first NBA Finals in franchise history.

Even when Monroe was traded, the Bullets remained a playoff contender throughout the 1970s. Ironically, they would face the Knicks with Monroe in the 1973 NBA Playoffs, but the Bullets did not have a chance as they were beaten by the Knicks who went on to win an NBA Championship that year.

In 1973, the team moved to Landover, Maryland and became the Capitol Bullets, and they changed their name to the Washington Bullets the next season. During the transition, the Bullets also played home games at Cole Field House, the home of the University of Maryland Terrapins, while waiting for the completion of their new arena in Landover: the Capital Centre (later known as the USAir/US Airways Arena). Through the mid-1990s, the Bullets still played a few games per season in Baltimore.

The Bullets made it back to the 1975 NBA Finals as the heavy favorites to capture the NBA Championship, but were shockingly swept by the Golden State Warriors in 4 games. They lost game 4 at the Capital Center.

The Miracle 1977-78 Season

Although they had future hall of famers Elvin Hayes and Wes Unseld on the team, The Bullets finished the season 44-38 and were a longshot to win the NBA Championship, but coach Dick Motta used the famed phrase "It ain't over 'til the fat lady sings!" This became the rallying cry for the Bullets as they finished a playoff run that led to the NBA Finals, defeating the Seattle Supersonics in 7 games to bring a professional sports championship to Washington D.C. for the first time in 36 years. Washington would make the finals again in 1978-79, but this time would lose to Seattle in 5 games.

Read more at Wikipedia.org