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Mother’s Day 1977: In ‘Herm’s Game,’ Gilliam leads Blazers over Lakers on way to NBA title

By Matt George Moore

PORTLAND, OR - 1977: The 1977 World Champions of basketball Portland Trail Blazers pose for a team portrait in Portland, Oregon. Seated (L-R): President Larry Weinberg, General Manager Harry Glickman, Herm Gilliam, Dave Twardzik, Johnny Davis, Lionel Hollins, Head Coach Jack Ramsay, Assistant Coach Jack McKinney. Second row: Lloyd Neal, Larry Steele, Corky Calhoun, Bill Walton, Maurice Lucas, Wally Walker, Robin Jones, Bob Gross. Back row: Radio announcer Bill Schonley, Team Physician Dr. Robert Cook, Business Manager George Rickles, Administrative Assistant Berlyn Hodges. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by NBA Photos/NBAE via Getty Images)
PORTLAND, OR - 1977: The 1977 World Champions of basketball Portland Trail Blazers pose for a team portrait in Portland, Oregon. Seated (L-R): President Larry Weinberg, General Manager Harry Glickman, Herm Gilliam, Dave Twardzik, Johnny Davis, Lionel Hollins, Head Coach Jack Ramsay, Assistant Coach Jack McKinney. Second row: Lloyd Neal, Larry Steele, Corky Calhoun, Bill Walton, Maurice Lucas, Wally Walker, Robin Jones, Bob Gross. Back row: Radio announcer Bill Schonley, Team Physician Dr. Robert Cook, Business Manager George Rickles, Administrative Assistant Berlyn Hodges. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by NBA Photos/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Let’s hop in the Wayback Machine and take a quick trip to a long time ago: ‘Herm’s Game’ — a Blazers playoff win over the Lakers at the L.A. Forum.

The year was 1977. The date: May 8 — Mother’s Day. President Jimmy Carter had recently taken office as the 39th president of the United States. The No. 1 song on the “Billboard Hot 100” was the Eagles’ “Hotel California.” And the ABC television network was the beast of primetime with shows like “Happy Days,” “Laverne & Shirley” and “The Six Million Dollar Man.”

The Portland Trail Blazers, meanwhile, were chasing history. In just their seventh season — and in their very first playoff appearance — the Blazers were rampaging through the postseason on their way to the franchise’s first and only NBA title.

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Having already dispatched the Chicago Bulls and Denver Nuggets in the first and second rounds, respectively, Portland squared off in the Western Conference Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers, led by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar — then in his second season in L.A.

Blazers-Lakers

Portland was led by perhaps its most legendary lineup, including Bill Walton (14 points, 17 rebounds, four blocks), Maurice Lucas (16 points, nine rebounds) and Lionel Hollins (31 points, nine rebounds and a ridiculous eight steals).

Bobby Gross (five points) and Johnny Davis (two points), however, were largely ineffective on offense. That meant Portland would need a hefty dose of firepower from their bench players.

Especially since Abdul-Jabbar (40 points and 17 rebounds) was unstoppable.

‘Herm’s Game’

Enter Herm Gilliam. He would score 24 points on 12/18 shooting in 28 minutes off the bench. And 14 of those points came in the final quarter.

Gilliam was in his first and only season in Portland, the last of his eight-season NBA career. He provided the spark that would give the Blazers a 2-0 series lead. His 24 points were the most he scored all season, including the playoffs.

Portland Trail Blazers
Herm Gilliam of the Portland Trail Blazers in 1977 (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images) /

Portland would ultimately sweep the Lakers in that series four games to none. And in the 1977 NBA Finals that followed, the Trail Blazers would come back from an 0-2 hole to win their first and only NBA title in six games against Julius Erving and the Philadelphia 76ers.

But it was Game 2 in Los Angeles that would cement Gilliam’s legend in Rip City.

Legend

Head coach Jack Ramsay told ESPN in 2001 that one of his memories from that championship season was “Herm Gilliam coming off the bench to hit an incredible array of shots to spark a struggling win in Game 2 at LA.”

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And this is how journalist and historian David Halberstam described Gilliam’s performance in his classic book, “The Breaks of the Game”:

"In the crucial playoff series against Los Angeles … (Gilliam) played one memorable game. Thereafter his teammates referred to it simply as Herm’s Game. Los Angeles was playing at home and playing a strong game, and it led 77-70 going into the fourth quarter. Herm Gilliam started the fourth quarter for Portland and played brilliantly, scoring, stealing the ball, scoring again, hitting difficult off-balance shots, making one particular shot, a falling away jump shot off the wrong foot, with Ramsay, it was said, on the bench shouting as he took the shot, “No, no, no … Yes!”"

Aftermath

Lucas later said, “I’m not sure we would have won the title” without Gilliam’s Game 2 performance.

And as Bill Walton put it: “We were down and out in the second half. Kareem was torturing me, and we were about to go down to defeat. Ninety seconds later, Herm had restored complete order in the universe. … Everything he touched turned to gold: jumpers, drives, rebounds, steals, deflections. The Lakers couldn’t even get the ball up court. It was an incredible performance.”

Herm Gilliam died in 2005 in Salem, Oregon, at the age of 58. But he’ll forever be remembered for his role in bringing the Blazers back from the brink of a Game 2 defeat in Los Angeles.

On their way to a series sweep.

On their way to the NBA title.

And on Mother’s Day, 1977.