1996–97 NBA season

The 1996–97 NBA season was the 51st season of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league used this season to mark its 50th anniversary, which included the unveiling of the league's list of its 50 greatest players. This particular season featured what has since been acknowledged as one of the most talented rookie-classes, featuring the debuts of Allen Iverson, Ray Allen, Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash, Jermaine O'Neal, Ben Wallace and Stephon Marbury. The season ended with the Chicago Bulls defeating the Utah Jazz 4 games to 2 in the NBA Finals to win the franchise's 5th championship.

1996–97 NBA season
LeagueNational Basketball Association
SportBasketball
DurationNovember 1, 1996 – April 20, 1997
April 24 – May 29, 1997 (Playoffs)
June 1 – 13, 1997 (Finals)
Number of teams29
TV partner(s)NBC, TBS, TNT
Draft
Top draft pickAllen Iverson
Picked byPhiladelphia 76ers
Regular season
Top seedChicago Bulls
Season MVPKarl Malone (Utah)
Top scorerMichael Jordan (Chicago Bulls)
Playoffs
Eastern championsChicago Bulls
  Eastern runners-upMiami Heat
Western championsUtah Jazz
  Western runners-upHouston Rockets
Finals
ChampionsChicago Bulls
  Runners-upUtah Jazz
Finals MVPMichael Jordan (Chicago)

1996 NBA lockout

The 1996 NBA lockout was the second lockout of four in the history of the NBA. It began and ended on July 10, 1996. The lockout was imposed after the league and the players union could not reach an agreement involving $50 million in profit sharing from television revenue. The league requested 50 percent of the profits be applied toward player salaries while the union pushed for a larger share. After a few hours of talks, the league agreed to allocate an additional $14 million per season in television revenue toward the salary cap during the last four years of the six-year collective bargaining agreement. The agreement ending the lockout was announced a few hours after the lockout began.[1][2][3]

Notable occurrences
Coaching changes
Offseason
Team 1995–96 coach 1996–97 coach
Charlotte Hornets Allan Bristow Dave Cowens
Dallas Mavericks Dick Motta Jim Cleamons
Milwaukee Bucks Mike Dunleavy, Sr. Chris Ford
New Jersey Nets Butch Beard John Calipari
Philadelphia 76ers John Lucas Johnny Davis
Phoenix Suns Cotton Fitzsimmons Danny Ainge
Toronto Raptors Brendan Malone Darrell Walker
In-season
Team Outgoing coach Incoming coach
Denver Nuggets Bernie Bickerstaff Dick Motta
Orlando Magic Brian Hill Richie Adubato
Sacramento Kings Garry St. Jean Eddie Jordan
San Antonio Spurs Bob Hill Gregg Popovich
Vancouver Grizzlies Brian Winters Stu Jackson
Washington Bullets Jim Lynam Bob Staak
Bob Staak Bernie Bickerstaff
  • The Chicago Bulls missed back-to-back 70-win seasons, going 69–13, tying the second best all-time record (with the 1971–72 Los Angeles Lakers season). With four games to play, the Bulls' record stood at 68–10, only needing a 2–2 split; however, they went 1–3 in those games. In the final game of the regular season, the Bulls lost to the Knicks 103–101 as Scottie Pippen missed a three-pointer that would have given the Bulls back-to-back 70-win seasons. This loss also prevented the Bulls from tying the best home record of 40–1, set by the 1985–86 Boston Celtics, finishing 39–2 at the United Center.
  • The 1997 NBA All-Star Game was played at Gund Arena in Cleveland, Ohio, with the East defeating the West 132–120. Glen Rice of the Charlotte Hornets was named the game's MVP after scoring a record 20 points in the third quarter, and 24 in the second half. Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kevin Garnett became the youngest player to play in the All-Star Game.
  • The New Jersey Nets and Orlando Magic both played two games against each other in Tokyo, Japan early into the season.
  • The Philadelphia 76ers played their first game at the Core States Center (later First Union and Wachovia Center, now Wells Fargo Center).
  • The Los Angeles Lakers signed free-agent center Shaquille O'Neal. Along with the addition of Kobe Bryant, the duo would become a fixture on the team for eight years, winning three championships together. However, a media created feud would eventually lead to O'Neal being traded to Miami in 2004.
  • Allen Iverson set a rookie record scoring with forty points or more in five successive games.
  • Due to extensive renovations at Oakland Coliseum Arena, the Golden State Warriors played their home games at the San Jose Arena (later the HP Pavilion at San Jose, now known as the SAP Center at San Jose), home of the NHL's San Jose Sharks. Following the season, the renovated arena became known as The Arena in Oakland, and was later renamed after the Oracle software company.
  • Dennis Rodman was suspended for 11 games after kicking a cameraman in a road game against the Minnesota Timberwolves after tripping over him.
  • In the last game of the regular season for both teams, the Washington Bullets defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers to obtain the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Had Cleveland won, the Cavaliers would have qualified instead. As for the Bullets, this was their final playoff appearance until 2005 where the team was renamed the "Wizards". It was the last time until the 2017-18 NBA season a regular-season game has served as a direct play-in game to the postseason.
  • Following a last-second three-point shot by John Stockton in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals, the Utah Jazz made their first ever NBA Finals appearance.
  • The rivalry between the New York Knicks and the Miami Heat got underway in Game 5 of the Conference Semifinals with a brawl at Miami Arena. In that brawl, P. J. Brown flipped Charlie Ward on the hardwood, inciting a bench brawl between the two. As a result, Brown was handed a two-game suspension, while Ward was suspended for Game 6. Meanwhile, as a result of leaving the bench during the brawl, Patrick Ewing and Allan Houston were suspended for Game 6, while Larry Johnson and John Starks were suspended for Game 7. The Heat eventually won the series in seven games.
  • In Game 4 of the Western Conference Semifinals against the Lakers, Karl Malone hit all 18 of his free-throw attempts, setting a playoff record for most attempts without a miss, since broken by Paul Pierce and Dirk Nowitzki.
  • After seven seasons of futility, the Minnesota Timberwolves finally made a postseason appearance, becoming the last of the late-1980s expansion teams to do so. In addition, their expansion counterparts (Miami, Orlando, and Charlotte) also made the playoffs. It would be seven years, however, before they could win their first playoff series.
  • The Atlanta Hawks played their final season at The Omni Coliseum. The site of The Omni was demolished to make way for Philips Arena, forcing the Hawks to play most of their home games at the Georgia Dome and, in games featuring lesser-profile opponents, the Alexander Memorial Coliseum for the next two seasons.
  • The season marked the fiftieth anniversary of the NBA. To commemorate the occasion, some NBA teams wore throwback uniforms, the NBA logo was decorated in gold for all uniforms, and the 50th anniversary logo patch was featured in the warmups. The 'NBA 50' logo also adorned all 29 NBA courts for the first month of the season, decorated in the respective team colors. In addition, the NBA also unveiled the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History during halftime of the 1997 NBA All-Star Game. One team, the Toronto Raptors, honored the Toronto Huskies BAA team by wearing the Huskies' throwback uniforms, and even played the New York Knicks at the SkyDome on the 50th anniversary of the first ever BAA/NBA game on November 1, 1996.
  • The Boston Celtics not only set a record for the worst winning percentage and number of wins in franchise history, but also become the only NBA team to win only once in 24 games against other teams in its division, in its last game therein versus the Philadelphia 76ers.[4] Several other teams, previously the 1970–71 Cleveland Cavaliers and latterly the 2005–06 Houston Rockets, won only one divisional game in a shorter schedule.
  • For the first time in NBA history, multiple teams – the above-mentioned Celtics and the second-year Vancouver Grizzlies – finished with a winning percentage below .200.[5] This was to be repeated in 1997–98 (the Nuggets and the Raptors) and again during 1998–99 (the Grizzlies again and the Los Angeles Clippers) but has never occurred in any season since 1999–2000.
  • After the San Antonio Spurs got off to a poor 3–15 start, general manager Gregg Popovich fired head coach Bob Hill. Popovich immediately took over as the head coach, beginning (as of the 2016–17 season) the NBA's longest active coaching tenure. The Spurs, after finishing the previous season with 59 victories, plunged to a 20–62 record while dealing with a myriad of injuries, especially to David Robinson and Sean Elliott. The 39-game decline was the worst regular-season turnaround in NBA history, surpassed 14 seasons later by the Cleveland Cavaliers, who lost 42 more games than the previous year.
  • The greatest comeback in National Basketball Association play occurred on November 27, 1996, when the Utah Jazz, down by 36 points to the Denver Nuggets late in the second quarter (70–34), overcame this deficit to win 107–103.

1996–97 NBA changes

Final standings

By division
Atlantic Division W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-Miami Heat 6121.744–29–1232–916–8
x-New York Knicks 5725.695431–1026–1519–6
x-Orlando Magic 4537.5491626–1519–2213–11
x-Washington Bullets 4438.5371725–1619–2214–10
New Jersey Nets 2656.3173516–2510–3111–13
Philadelphia 76ers 2260.2683911–3011–3011–14
Boston Celtics 1567.1834611–304–371–23
Central Division W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-Chicago Bulls 6913.841–39–230–1124–4
x-Atlanta Hawks 5626.6831336–520–2117–11
x-Detroit Pistons 5428.6591530–1124–1717–11
x-Charlotte Hornets 5428.6591530–1124–1714–14
Cleveland Cavaliers 4240.5122725–1617–2413–15
Indiana Pacers 3943.4763021–2018–2311–17
Milwaukee Bucks 3349.4023620–2113–2810–18
Toronto Raptors 3052.3663918–2312–296–22
Midwest Division W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-Utah Jazz 6418.780–38–326–1519–5
x-Houston Rockets 5725.695730–1127–1419–5
x-Minnesota Timberwolves 4042.4882425–1615–2616–8
Dallas Mavericks 2458.2934014–2710–319–15
Denver Nuggets 2161.2564312–299–327–17
San Antonio Spurs 2062.2444412–298–338–16
Vancouver Grizzlies 1468.171508–336–356–18
Pacific Division W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-Seattle SuperSonics 5725.695–31–1026–1516–8
x-Los Angeles Lakers 5626.683131–1025–1618–6
x-Portland Trail Blazers 4933.598829–1220–2115–9
x-Phoenix Suns 4042.4881725–1615–2613–11
x-Los Angeles Clippers 3646.4392121–2015–2610–14
Sacramento Kings 3448.4152322–1912–298–16
Golden State Warriors 3052.3662718–2312–294–20

By conference
1996–97 NBA East standings
# Eastern Conference
Team W L PCT GB
1 z-Chicago Bulls6913.841–
2 y-Miami Heat6121.7448
3 x-New York Knicks5725.69512
4 x-Atlanta Hawks5626.68313
5 x-Detroit Pistons5428.65915
6 x-Charlotte Hornets5428.65915
7 x-Orlando Magic4537.54924
8 x-Washington Bullets4438.53725
9 Cleveland Cavaliers4240.51227
10 Indiana Pacers3943.47630
11 Milwaukee Bucks3349.40236
12 Toronto Raptors3052.36639
13 New Jersey Nets2656.31743
14 Philadelphia 76ers2260.26847
15 Boston Celtics1567.18354
1996–97 NBA West standings
# Western Conference
Team W L PCT GB
1 c-Utah Jazz6418.780–
2 y-Seattle SuperSonics5725.6957
3 x-Houston Rockets5725.6957
4 x-Los Angeles Lakers5626.6838
5 x-Portland Trail Blazers4933.59815
6 x-Minnesota Timberwolves4042.48824
7 x-Phoenix Suns4042.48824
8 x-Los Angeles Clippers3646.43928
9 Sacramento Kings3448.41530
10 Golden State Warriors3052.36634
11 Dallas Mavericks2458.29340
12 Denver Nuggets2161.25643
13 San Antonio Spurs2062.24444
14 Vancouver Grizzlies1468.17150

Notes

  • z – Clinched home court advantage for the entire playoffs
  • c – Clinched home court advantage for the conference playoffs
  • y – Clinched division title
  • x – Clinched playoff spot

Playoffs

Teams in bold advanced to the next round. The numbers to the left of each team indicate the team's seeding in its conference, and the numbers to the right indicate the number of games the team won in that round. The division champions are marked by an asterisk. Home court advantage does not necessarily belong to the higher-seeded team, but instead the team with the better regular season record; teams enjoying the home advantage are shown in italics.

First Round Conference Semifinals Conference Finals NBA Finals
            
1 Utah 3
8 L.A. Clippers 0
1 Utah 4
4 L.A. Lakers 1
4 L.A. Lakers 3
5 Portland 1
1 Utah 4
Western Conference
3 Houston 2
3 Houston 3
6 Minnesota 0
3 Houston 4
2 Seattle 3
2 Seattle 3
7 Phoenix 2
W1 Utah 2
E1 Chicago 4
1 Chicago 3
8 Washington 0
1 Chicago 4
4 Atlanta 1
4 Atlanta 3
5 Detroit 2
1 Chicago 4
Eastern Conference
2 Miami 1
3 New York 3
6 Charlotte 0
3 New York 3
2 Miami 4
2 Miami 3
7 Orlando 2

Statistics leaders
CategoryPlayerTeamStat
Points per gameMichael JordanChicago Bulls29.6
Rebounds per gameDennis RodmanChicago Bulls16.1
Assists per gameMark JacksonIndiana Pacers11.4
Steals per gameMookie BlaylockAtlanta Hawks2.72
Blocks per gameShawn BradleyNew Jersey Nets3.40
FG%Gheorghe MureșanWashington Bullets.604
FT%Mark PriceGolden State Warriors.906
3FG%Glen RiceCharlotte Hornets.470

NBA awards

Yearly awards

Note: All information on this page was obtained from the History section of NBA.com

Player of the week

The following players were named NBA Player of the Week.

Week Player
Nov. 1 – Nov. 10 Hakeem Olajuwon (Houston Rockets)
Nov. 11 – Nov. 17 Dale Ellis (Denver Nuggets)
Nov. 18 – Nov. 24 (tie) Charles Barkley (Houston Rockets)
Nov. 18 – Nov. 24 (tie) Karl Malone (Utah Jazz)
Nov. 25 – Dec. 1 Dikembe Mutombo (Atlanta Hawks)
Dec. 2 – Dec. 8 Terry Mills (Detroit Pistons)
Dec. 9 – Dec. 15 Shaquille O'Neal (Los Angeles Lakers)
Dec. 16 – Dec. 22 Terrell Brandon (Cleveland Cavaliers)
Dec. 23 – Dec. 29 Tim Hardaway (Miami Heat)
Dec. 30 – Jan. 5 Glen Rice (Charlotte Hornets)
Jan. 6 – Jan. 12 Glenn Robinson (Milwaukee Bucks)
Jan. 13 – Jan. 19 Grant Hill (Detroit Pistons)
Jan. 20 – Jan. 26 Mitch Richmond (Sacramento Kings)
Jan. 27 – Feb. 2 Glen Rice (Charlotte Hornets)
Feb. 11 – Feb. 16 Alonzo Mourning (Miami Heat)
Feb. 17 – Feb. 23 Scottie Pippen (Chicago Bulls)
Feb. 24 – Mar. 2 Loy Vaught (Los Angeles Clippers)
Mar. 3 – Mar. 9 Patrick Ewing (New York Knicks)
Mar. 10 – Mar. 16 Karl Malone (Utah Jazz)
Mar. 17 – Mar. 23 Karl Malone (Utah Jazz)
Mar. 24 – Mar. 30 Kevin Johnson (Phoenix Suns)
Apr. 1 – Apr. 6 Grant Hill (Detroit Pistons)
Apr. 7 – Apr. 13 Allen Iverson (Philadelphia 76ers)
Apr. 14 – Apr. 20 Chris Webber (Washington Bullets)

Player of the month

The following players were named NBA Player of the Month.

Month Player
November Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls)
December Shaquille O'Neal (Los Angeles Lakers)
January Grant Hill (Detroit Pistons)
February Glen Rice (Charlotte Hornets)
March Karl Malone (Utah Jazz)
April Kevin Johnson (Phoenix Suns)

Rookie of the month

The following players were named NBA Rookie of the Month.

Month Rookie
November Allen Iverson (Philadelphia 76ers)
December (tie) Shareef Abdur-Rahim (Vancouver Grizzlies)
December (tie) Kerry Kittles (New Jersey Nets)
January Stephon Marbury (Minnesota Timberwolves)
February Shareef Abdur-Rahim (Vancouver Grizzlies)
March Marcus Camby (Toronto Raptors)
April Allen Iverson (Philadelphia 76ers)

Coach of the month

The following coaches were named NBA Coach of the Month.

Month Coach
November Rudy Tomjanovich (Houston Rockets)
December Pat Riley (Miami Heat)
January Lenny Wilkens (Atlanta Hawks)
February Doug Collins (Detroit Pistons)
March Jerry Sloan (Utah Jazz)
April Dave Cowens (Charlotte Hornets)
gollark: The e^nπ even.
gollark: I feel like it should involve something something complex numbers given the nπ, but that's all.
gollark: I don't play on any version past 1.12.2 nowadays.
gollark: ↓ LyricLy
gollark: Technically osmarks does, but I can use their account.

References
  1. Bembry, Jerry (July 10, 1996). "NBA lockout passes quickly Brief stoppage delays free-agent talks 2 days". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved November 17, 2011.
  2. Brown, Clifton (July 10, 1996). "Deal Is a Lock, Not a Lockout, For the NBA". The New York Times. Retrieved November 17, 2011.
  3. "NBA Lockout Chronology". CNN Sports Illustrated. January 6, 1999. Retrieved November 17, 2011.
  4. 1996–1997 Boston Celtics schedule and results
  5. Land of Basketball; NBA Worst Season Winning Percentages
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.