Reliving every Washington Wizards Leap Day game in history
By Arrick Joel
Leap Day, 1976: Bullets hold off late Rockets run
Coming off their NBA Finals appearance in 1975, the Washington Bullets were paid a Leap Day visit at the Capital Centre in Landover by the Houston Rockets. Sitting at 30-30, future Basketball Hall of Famer Calvin Murphy hoped to lead his Rockets to a victory on the road.
Washington got busy early against Houston, taking a commanding 61-46 lead into halftime. However, Kevin Kunnert's 28 points encouraged the Rockets to claw their way back into the game, outscoring the Bullets by 10 points in the fourth quarter.
Phil Chenier led the way in a 110-108 Bullets win, scoring a game-high 35 points. The scoring onslaught was one of many big nights for Chenier after missing the All-Star Game in 1976. The 6'3" guard increased his points per game average by over four points post-All-Star break, helping the Bullets to their eighth consecutive playoff appearance.
Leap Day, 1984: Bullets outmatched by loaded Pistons offense
In their first Leap Day contest of the three-point era, the Washington Bullets shot a solid 2-of-4 from beyond the arc against the Detroit Pistons. Hall of Fame guard Isiah Thomas was the linchpin of a Pistons offense that ranked third in the NBA in points per game.
Behind their offensive firepower and a huge lead in rebounds, the Pistons notched a 137-106 win over the Bullets, Washington's second-worst margin of defeat that season. The 137 points were the second-most the Bullets had surrendered to a team in 1984 behind only the 139 points the Pistons scored in Washington at the beginning of February.
Despite the outcome, Bullets rookie Jeff Malone had a nice game off the bench, finishing the outing with 18 points and 9 assists in 32 minutes.