The 1979 NBA All-Star Game was an exhibition basketball game which was played on February 4, 1979, at the Pontiac Silverdome in the Detroit suburb of Pontiac, Michigan, the home of the Detroit Pistons. It was the 29th edition of the National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star Game, held during the 1978–79 NBA season.
This was the first All-Star Game where no members from Boston Celtics or New York Knicks had been selected as All-Stars.
In addition, this was the first All-Star game held in a football or baseball dome as opposed to a traditional basketball arena; the Detroit Pistons were playing at the Pontiac Silverdome at that time. This was the third All-Star hosted by the Pistons franchise, after doing so in 1953 in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and in 1959 in Detroit.
The Western All-Stars defeated the Eastern All-Stars, 134–129. The MVP of the game was David Thompson, who scored 25 points. The game was officiated by John Vanak, Jack Madden, and Hugh Evans.
Coaches
Dick Motta, head coach of the Eastern Conference leader Washington Bullets, qualified as the head coach of the Eastern All-Stars. Lenny Wilkens, head coach of the Western Conference leader Seattle SuperSonics, qualified as the head coach of the Western All-Stars.
Roster
Western Conference
| Player, Team | MIN | FGM | FGA | FTM | FTA | REB | AST | BLK | PFS | PTS |
| David Thompson, DEN | 34 | 11 | 17 | 3 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 25 |
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, LAL | 28 | 5 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 11 |
| Dennis Johnson, SEA | 27 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 12 |
| George McGinnis, DEN | 25 | 5 | 12 | 6 | 11 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 16 |
| Paul Westphal, PHO | 21 | 8 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 17 |
| Marques Johnson, MIL | 20 | 3 | 11 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 10 |
| Maurice Lucas, POR | 19 | 4 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 10 |
| Walter Davis, PHO | 19 | 4 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Jack Sikma, SEA | 18 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| Artis Gilmore, CHI | 15 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| Otis Birdsong, KCK | 14 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 |
| Totals | 240 | 56 | 105 | 22 | 36 | 45 | 25 | 3 | 24 | 134 |
Eastern Conference
| Player, Team | MIN | FGM | FGA | FTM | FTA | REB | AST | BLK | PFS | PTS |
| Julius Erving, PHI | 39 | 10 | 22 | 9 | 12 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 29 |
| George Gervin, SAS | 34 | 8 | 16 | 10 | 11 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 26 |
| Bob Lanier, DET | 31 | 5 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 10 |
| Elvin Hayes, WSB | 28 | 5 | 11 | 3 | 5 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 13 |
| Rudy Tomjanovich, HOU | 24 | 6 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 12 |
| Bob Dandridge, WSB | 18 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 8 |
| Moses Malone, HOU | 17 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Calvin Murphy, HOU | 15 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 6 |
| Pete Maravich, NOJ | 14 | 5 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 10 |
| Campy Russell, CLE | 13 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Larry Kenon, SAS | 7 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Doug Collins, PHI (injured) | ||||||||||
| Totals | 240 | 50 | 103 | 29 | 38 | 53 | 22 | 3 | 26 | 129 |
Score by periods
| Score by periods: | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final |
| West | 36 | 44 | 24 | 30 | 134 |
| East | 27 | 31 | 40 | 31 | 129 |
References
- The Official NBA Basketball Encyclopedia. Villard Books. 1994. p. 250. ISBN 0-679-43293-0.
- basketball-reference.com. "1979 NBA All-Star Game". Retrieved July 17, 2008.